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The  Recreation  Outdoor  Library 

“Fishing  Facts” 

—By  SHERIDAN  R.  JONES 

“Bait  Casting” 

—By  SHERIDAN  R.  JONES 

“Fly  Casting” 

—By  SHERIDAN  R.  JONES 

“The  Camper’s  Manual” 

—By  HORACE  KEPHART 

“Wing  Shooting” 

—By  CAPT.  CHARLES  ASKINS 

“Big  Game  Hunting” 

—By  COL.  TOWNSEND  WHELEN 

“Shooting  Facts” 

—By  CAPT.  CHARLES  ASKINS 

“The  Fly-Rod  For  Bass" 

—By  CAL  L.  JOHNSON 


ORDER  FROM 

OUTDOOR  LIFE 

353-Fourth  Ave.  New  York,  N.  Y. 


library 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 


The  Recreation  Outdoor  Library 


Bait  Casting 

THE  SHORT  ROD  AND  HOW  TO  USE  IT 


By 

Sheridan  R.  Jones 


OUTDOOR  LIFE 

353  4th  Ave. 


New  York 


Copyright,  1923  and  1927 
by 

OUTDOOR  LIFE  PUBLISHING  CO. 
All  rights  reserved 
Reprinted  1934 
Reprinted  1936 
Reprinted  1938 
Reprinted  1940 


> 


f 


TO  MICROPTERUS  DOLOMIEU,  THE  SMALL-MOUTH, 
THAT  PRINCELY  FRESH-WATER  FISH,  WHOSE 
GAME  BATTLES,  RESOURCEFUL  STRATEGY 
AND  UNCONQUERABLE  FIGHTING  SPIRIT 
HAVE  MADE  POSSIBLE  SHORT  ROD 
HISTORY,  THIS  BOOK  IS  AFFEC¬ 
TIONATELY  DEDICATED 


ii 


INTRODUCTION 


TO  THE  angling  fraternity,  especially  that  part  of 
it  more  or  less  devoted  to  the  short  rod  and  to 
the  art  of  playing  from  the  reel,  we  present  this  little 
handbook  on  bait-casting  equipment  and  methods.  We 
have  prepared  its  pages  with  the  idea  constantly  in  mind 
that  any  treatment  of  such  a  subject  must,  necessarily, 
be  but  an  outline  or  a  skeleton — the  working  parts  and 
the  finer  detail  being  supplied  by  a  growing  fund  of  ex¬ 
perience  as  the  angler  progresses  from  the  ranks  of  the 
novice  to  the  goal  of  the  expert. 

For  this  reason  there  have  been  purposely  omitted 
many  facts  as  well  as  fancies.  That  there  may  be  other 
omissions  of  an  unintentional  nature  we  have  little  doubt, 
and  we  anticipate  their  appearance  with  a  feeling  of  con¬ 
tent,  for  we  know  that  this  little  volume  will  fall  into 
the  hands  of  none  but  “anglers  and  very  honest  men.” 

We  have  endeavored  to  present  the  fundamentals  of 
bait-casting  tackle  and  of  bait-casting  methods  in  as 
simple  a  manner  as  the  more  or  less  complete  treatment 
of  a  subject  will  permit.  Here  and  there  we  have  ex¬ 
pressed  a  personal  preference,  more  by  way  of  illustration 
than  with  the  hope  that  our  judgment  will  be  accepted 
as  a  fixed  and  unchangeable  bait-casting  dictum. 

We  are  confident  that  the  novice  will  be  able  to  de¬ 
velop  sufficiently  far,  through  a  perusal  of  these  pages, 
to  give  a  good  account  of  himself  on  any  water  and  in 
any  group  of  anglers.  To  take  fish  he  must,  in  addition, 
patiently  indulge  in  practice  and  must  cultivate  the  bait- 
caster’s  best  offering — fish  sense.  Of  these  our  store  is 
likewise  far  too  incomplete  to  incorporate  more  than  a 
mere  suggestion  here  and  there  within  the  pages  of  this 
book.  Sheridan  R.  Jones. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

Page 

Dedication .  v 

Introduction . vii 

The  Bait-casting  Rod .  1 

General  Design  and  Trimmings .  1 

Rod  Materials  and  Their  Virtues .  3 

The  Steel  Caster — A  General  Purpose  Rod .  8 

The  Split  Bamboo — An  Ideal  Short  Rod .  11 

Solid  Wood  Rods .  12 

Light  Weight  Casters .  15 

Tournament  Rods . 17 

The  Bait-casting  Reel .  19 

Why  a  Quadruple  Multiplier .  19 

Reel  Materials .  21 

The  Standard  Caster .  20 

Level-winders  and  Self-thumbers .  20 

The  Tournament  Reel .  21 

The  Indiana  Pattern  Reel .  25 

The  Bait-casting  Line .  25 

Material . 27 

Braids  . 27 

Colors .  27 

Sizes .  28 

Casting  Leaders .  29 

The  Art  of  Bait  Casting .  39 

Rigging  the  Rod .  31 

Thumbing  the  Reel .  31 

Making  the  Cast .  32 

Retrieving  the  Lure .  45 

Striking,  Playing  and  Netting .  40 

Handling  Leaping  Fish .  44 

Night  Casting .  58 

Beating  a  Back-lash .  51 

The  Bait-casting  Lure .  53 

Plugs: . 55 

Rinds  and  Chunks .  65 

Spoons . 61 

Frogs  and  Minnows . 63 

Bait-casting  Waters — Lakes . , . . . . . .  65 

The  Shallows — How  and  What  to  Cast .  67 

Working  the  Weed  Beds .  77 

Deep-water  Casting . • .  71 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Page 

Bait-casting  Waters — Streams .  75 

Casting  Rapid  Waters .  75 

Sluggish  Streams .  77 

Weather,  Seasons  and  Fish .  79 

Care  of  Bait-casting  Tackle .  81 

Rods .  81 

Reels . 85 

Lines . 86 

Lures . 86 


A  bait-caster’s  dream 


BAIT  CASTING 


Chapter  I 

THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 

General  Design  and  Trimmings 

AS  ORIGINALLY  designed,  bait-casting  rods  were 
l  intended  for  the  casting  of  comparatively  heavy 
lures,  after  the  manner  of  throwing  an  apple  from  the 
end  of  a  pointed  stick.  Most  of  us,  who  were  boys  in 
days  gone  by  when  the  apple  game  was  at  its  height,  soon 
learned  that  a  stick  of  a  certain  length  was  right  for  the 
casting  of  these  missiles.  Some  of  us  were  experts  in 
the  handling  of  this  “deadly  weapon,”  and  the  care  with 
which  we  selected  our  sticks  would  do  justice  to  the  mod¬ 
ern  rodster  in  the  selection  of  his  rod.  A  casting  stick 
can  be  too  long  and  it  can  be  too  short — a  bait-casting  rod 
likewise.  Bait-casting  is  the  same  old  apple  stick  game 
— with  trimmings. 

We  are  not  inclined  to  enter  a  brief  as  to  the  proper 
length  of  a  casting  rod.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  anglers 
who  have  been  brought  up  on  the  fly  rod  always  demand 
‘i  casting  rod  that  is  too  long  for  the  best  work  with 
topical  short  rod  lures  and  exact  short  rod  methods.  We 
fold  little  reason  for  going  over  the  five-foot  mark  in 
the  selection  of! a  bait-casting  rod;  in  fact,  it  is  the  ideal 
length  for  the  average  short  rod.  To  be  exact,  a  length 
of  four  feet  and  ten  inches  makes  a  wonderful  rod  in 


1 


2 


BAIT  CASTING 


bamboo;  a  rod  that  is  as  near  right  for  the  casting  of 
ordinary  plugs  and  frogs  as  the  angler  can  find.  Nine- 
tenths  of  all  the  bait-casting  rods  made  are  in  the  five- 
foot  length  or  less;  seven-tenths  of  them  are  exactly  five 
feet.  The  beginner  cannot  go  wrong  if  he  selects  a  rod 
very  close  to  the  five-foot  length. 

Bait-casting  rods  have  the  reel  placed  above  the  hand 
so  that  the  thumb  may  be  placed  on  the  rear  side-pillar 
for  thumbing  purposes  when  making  a  cast.  The  reel 
band  (movable  ring  on  handle)  may  or  may  not  be  pro¬ 
vided  with  a  finger  hook;  if  not,  it  may  be  locked  in  place, 
after  being  shoved  over  the  rod  clip,  by  a  quarter  turn 
as  a  usual  thing.  Either  the  finger  hook  or  the  locking 
band  will  hold  the  reel  firmly  against  the  rod  at  all  times. 
A  free  band  will  have  a  tendency  to  work  loose  under 
actual  fishing  conditions  and  is,  therefore,  to  be  avoided. 

The  hand  grasp  may  be  either  single  or  double.  More 
and  more  the  latter  is  coming  into  popular  use  because 
the  forward  grip  gives  a  nice  hold  on  the  rod  during 
the  spooling  or  “reeling  in”  movements.  The  extra  grip 
gives  a  bit  more  weight  but  puts  it  in  a  place  where 
weight  makes  little  difference.  Be  sure  that  the  handle 
is  constructed  of  solid  cork  rings  and  is  not  a  veneer; 
this  makes  the  best  grasp  for  bait-casting  work,  though 
frequently  the  hand  grasp  is  made  of  cork  composition, 
is  wound  with  celluloid,  or  is  left  in  plain  wood.  Cord 
wound  grasps  are  sometimes  found  on  the  heavier  rods 
that  will  be  used  for  trolling  as  well  as  casting,  but  the 
solid  cork  ring  is  the  standard  type  of  construction.  The 
better  grade  rods  will  be  equipped  with  german  silver, 
or  other  white  metal  fittings  while  the  cheaper  grade 
will  be  nickel-plated  brass. 

Bait-casting  guides  are  large  guides  always  and  are 
usually  of  the  single  standing  ring  type,  though  the  two- 
ring  guide  is  frequently  used  on  less  expensive  rods  One 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 


3 


sometimes  sees  bell  guides  on  a  casting  rod  (with  the  ex* 
ception  of  the  first  guide  and  the  casting  top),  but  most 
anglers  prefer  the  narrow  single  standing  ring  type.  Al¬ 
most  without  exception  bait-casters  of  experience  demand 
that  the  top  be  offset,  though  there  are  some  very  effec¬ 
tive  stirrup  tops  or  tube  tops  that  are  not  offset.  Casting 
tops  on  the  better  rods  are  usually  of  the  offset  type  for 
this  reason. 

In  materials,  agate  guides  represent  the  best  that  can 
be  obtained,  for  they  are  hard,  smooth  and  pretty — the 
last  mentioned  point  is  not  without  its  importance,  as  any 
tackle  salesman  will  aver.  The  idea  is  to  prevent  friction 
with  the  line,  and  the  smooth  surface  of  the  agate,  when 
properly  polished,  is  well  worth  while.  There  are  some 
excellent  imitation  agate  guides  and  some  made  of  file- 
proof  metal  that  are  just  as  good  as  real  agates  in  every¬ 
thing  save  beauty  and  price.  All  metal  guides  should 
be  tungsten  steel,  or  some  type  of  steel  of  equal  hard¬ 
ness,  never  of  german  or  nickel  silver,  a  metaL  so  soft 
that  much  casting  will  develop  line  cnts-arid  thus  give 
friction.  Cheap  rods  often  carry  the  soft  metal  guides 
and  tops.  If  the  angler  cannot  afford  a  higher  priced 
wand,  let  him  substitute  imitation  agate,  tungsten  steel 
or  real  agate  first  guide  and  top ;  the  guides  in  between 
will  not  wear  to  any  great  extent. 

In  design,  casting  rods  are  usually  of  two  or  three 
piece  construction  and  all  joints  of  equal  length ;  or,  of 
two  piece  construction  with„a  short  butt  joint  and  longer 
tip.  Of  course,  a  single  piece  rod  is  the  ideal  tool,  since 
it  is  the  material  itself  that  gives  the  casting  action  and 
the  introduction  of  ferrules,  breaks  up  this  uniformity. 
The  less  ferrules  the  better^  hence  many  prefer  the  short 
butt  and  long  tip  design.  There  are,  however,  some  won¬ 
derful  rods  in  the  two  and  three  equal  piece  patterns, 
and  the  caster  may  use  his  own  judgment  in  making  his 


Overhead  cast — first  position.  Spool  held  firmly  with  thumb 
Make  an  easy  forward  start 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 


5 


selection,  knowing  full  well  that  a  high  quality  rod  of 
either  design  will  do  excellent  work.  Shorter  joints  and 
more  of  them  are  frequently  employed,  but,  without  ex¬ 
ception,  such  rods  lack  in  delivery.  Rods  of  this  type 
are  built  for  greater  ease  in  carrying — for  trunk,  suitcase 
and  coat  pocket  use — and  are  usually  styled  Sunday  rods. 

In  steel  rods  the  matter  of  ferrules  makes  little  differ¬ 
ence  and  a  many  jointed  rod  of  this  material  is  good. 
They  are  commonly  made  in  three  joints  and  an  inde¬ 
pendent  butt;  the  joints  being  of  equal  length,  though 
there  are  a  few  with  longer  tip  joints. 

Many  steel  casting  rods  are  of  telescopic  pattern — that 
is,  the  joints  slip  into  each  other  instead  of  coming  apart. 
They  carry  guides  and  tip  tops  as  do  the  regular  jointed 
rods  and  are  in  every  way  satisfactory,  though  most 
anglers  prefer  the  jointed  to  the  telescopic. 

The  standard  bait-casting  rod  will  possess  the  follow¬ 
ing  characteristics:  Be  made  of  split  bamboo,  steel  or 
v  solid  wood  and  be  in  the  neighborhood  of  five  feet  in 
length;  have  a  single  or  double  handle  with  german  sil¬ 
ver  mountings  if  possible;  possess  a  reel  band  with  finger 
hook  or  a  locking  reel  band,  reel  to  be  above  the  hand 
grasp;  hand  grasp  of  cork  rings  or  cork  composition; 
guides  of  single  standing  ring  design,  agate,  file-proof 
metal  or  imitation  agate,  at  least  the  first  guide;  tip  top 
to  be  offset  and  of  the  same  materials.  There  may  be 
some  departure  from  this  standard  as  noted  in  the  para¬ 
graphs  above,  but  on  the  whole  this  summary  about  fills 
the  bill. 

Rod  Materials  and  Their  Virtues 

STEEL.  Excellent  rods  for  general  casting  are  now 
made  of  steel.  The  angler  must  not  think  of  the  steel 
rod  in  terms  of  a  few  years  back  when  such  rods  were 
heavy  poles,  for  there  has  been  a  wonderful  improvement 


Overhead  cast — second  and  third  positions.  Thumb  pressure 
removed  somewhat  during  this  stage.  Lure  gets  its  direction 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 


7 


in  design,  workmanship)  and  in  the  steel  itself.  These 
rods  will  stand  more  grief  than  rods  of  any  other  ma¬ 
terial,  possess  excellent  casting  force  and  action  with 
ordinary  lures,  are  great  companions  when  going  far  in 
from  any  source  of  repair,  are  the  best  rods  for  trolling, 
since  they  will  not  take  a  set,  and  as  general  purpose 
rods  are  in  a  class  by  themselves.  They  possess  more 
strength  at  any  degree  of  flexibility  than  rods  of  other 
materials. 

BAMBOO.  When  it  comes  right  down  to  bait-casting 
action  of  the  highest  possible  type,  together  with  the 
ability  to  withstand  setting,  the  six-strip  split  bamboo  is 
IT  in  rod  materials.  Bamboo  is  not  as  strong  as  steel 
by  any  means,  will  take  a  set  under  undue  strain  but 
not  so  quickly  as  solid  woods,  yet  possesses  a  type  of  flexi¬ 
bility  and  casting  force  that  just  seems  about  perfection. 
Delicacy  of_  action  and  response  to  every  whim  of  the 
angler — that  about  sums  up  split  bamboo  as  a  rod  ma¬ 
terial.  For  the  handling  of  the  lighter  lures  bamboo  rods 
are  at  their  best,  so  it  is  the  choice  of  the  discriminating 
angler  as  a  rod  material  for  the  finest  kind  of  casting. 

SOLID  WOODS.  With  the  exception  of  hickory, 
bait-casting  rods  of  solid  wood  have  lost  in  favor  to  a 
marked  degree.  Hickory,  properly  treated  and  properly 
made  up,  is  a  fine  short  rod  material  approaching  bamboo 
in  many  respects.  It  can  be  treated  so  that  it  is  far  more 
free  from  setting  than  are  the  other  solid  wood  rod  ma¬ 
terials,  with  the  possible  exception  of  bethabara,  and  pos¬ 
sesses  a  casting  force  and  action  of  superior  quality.  Beth¬ 
abara,  greenheart  and  lancewood,  while  possessing  excel¬ 
lent  casting  qualities,  will  set  under  strain  and  have  been 
largely  abandoned  as  casting-rod  materials  on  this  side 
of  the  water.  They  are  good  woods  for  the  amateur  rod 
maker  to  tinker  with  because  they  work  up  into  rods  far 
more  easily  than  does  the  bamboo,  which  must  be  prop- 


8 


BAIT  CASTING 


erly  split,  fitted  and  glued.  We  do  not  recommend  any 
solid  wood  to  the  bait-caster  other  than  first  quality 
bethabara  and  hickory;  and  a  good  hickory  rod  is  a  cast¬ 
ing  rod  and  no  doubt  about  it. 

The  Steel  Caster — A  General  Purpose  Rod 

Steel  casting  rods  fall  readily  into  two  classes — light 
weight  rods,  weighing  from  about  six  to  eight  ounces, 
and  regular  weight  rods  at  from  eight  to  ten  ounces.  The 
heavier  rods  used  for  muskellonge  and  salt-water  casting 
are  really  trolling  rods  and  will  not  be  considered  in  this 
treatment. 

Most  steel  rods  are  of  the  three-piece  and  free  butt 
type  of  construction — this  is  a  standard  way  of  building 
the  steel  caster,  and  there  is  little  reason  for  departing 
from  this  type  in  regular  weight  steels.  The  lightest 
weight  rods,  six  ounces,  are  either  silk  wound  or  supplied 
in  joints  of  unequal  length  when  put  out  by  the  better 
manufacturers.  Five-ounce  rods  with  equal  length  joints 
have  been  made  and  used,  and,  no  doubt,  will  be  put  on 
the  market  again.  But  these  light  steels  were  so  abused 
that  manufacturers  were  forced  to  shift  the  weight  up 
to  six  ounces  or  better.  Silk  winding  naturally  keeps  the 
rod  from  buckling  and  stiffens  it  up,  or  slows  it  up,  some¬ 
what.  Such  rods  are  usually  termed  “de  luxe”  patterns 
and  cost  considerably  more  than  the  ordinary  run  of 
steels,  but  are  wonderful  acting  rods — approaching  the 
bamboo  in  fineness  of  action.  Rods  with  unequal  length 
joints  permit  the  manufacturer  to  get  excellent  action 
with  almost  any  degree  of  flexibility,  due  to  shifting  the 
lengths  of  the  larger  tubes.  They  are  great  casters  in 
the  six  to  seven  ounce  weights. 

The  average  high  quality  steel  caster  will  weigh  in  the 
neighborhood  of  eight  ounces  and  may  or  may  not  be 
equipped  with  a  second  grasp  above  the  reel  seat  and  a 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 


9 


finger  hook,  depending  upon  the  desire  of  the  angler. 
This  rod  will  cast  the  ordinary  weight  plugs  and  frogs 
with  a  twelve  to  fourteen-pound  test  line.  For  the 
lighter  plugs  and  pork  rind  rigs  we  would  recommend  the 
steel  rods  weighing  less  than  eight  ounces,  although  an 
eight-ounce  rod  will  handle  light  lures  if  the  proper  line 
is  used — ten-pound  test,  soft-braided  silk.  For  very  light 
lures,  such  as  spinners  and  spoons,  the  six  to  six  and  one- 
half  ounce  rod  should  be  chosen  and  an  eight-pound  test 
line  used. 

Rods  from  nine  to  ten  ounces  need  the  heavier  lures 
and  are  used  when  the  angler  desires  to  troll  occasion¬ 
ally  as  well  as  cast.  Sixteen  to  twenty-pound  test  lines 
may  be  used  when  the  fish  sought  will  run  large — fifteen 
to  thirty  pounds.  Smaller  lures  can  be  used,  but  the 
rods  are  quite  stiff,  and  the  lighter  test  lines  must  be 
spooled  if  good  results  are  to  obtain. 

Steel  rods  are  made  all  the  way  from  four  to  six  and 
one-half  feet  in  the  bait-casting  type,  but  the  four  and 
one-half,  five  and  five  and  one-half  foot  lengths  are  the 
ones  commonly  employed.  It  is  true  that  the  five-foot 
length  is  liked  by  the  great  majority  of  anglers. 

It  is  not  safe  to  buy  a  steel  rod  unless  it  is  put  out  by 
a  reliable  maker  and  is  guaranteed  against  breakage  under 
ordinary  circumstances.  There  are  several  first-class  rods 
on  the  market,  any  one  of  which  will  give  excellent  serv¬ 
ice  and  prove  a  good  caster  under  real  fishing  conditions. 
The  day  is  passed  when  the  steel  was  considered  a  pole, 
and  no  fisherman  need  be  ashamed  to  carry  a  high  quality 
steel  and  cast  it  in  company  with  bamboo  and  solid  wood. 

On  the  whole  a  general  purpose  steel  caster  will  fit 
the  following  lines:  Be  five  feet  in  length,  weigh  in  the 
neighborhood  of  eight  ounces,  have  standing  one-ring 
guides  and  offset  or  large  opening  tip  of  either  agate,  imi¬ 
tation  agate  or  file-proof  metal,  single  or  double  handgrasp 


Overhead  cast — finishing  the  cast.  Reel  riding  on  its  tail-plate  bearings 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 


11 


of  solid  cork  rings  or  composition  cork,  and  be  stamped 
with  the  guarantee  trademark  of  the  maker.  Should  the 
angler  desire  a  longer  or  shorter  rod,  we  would  offer 
no  objection,  and  a  lighter  weight  rod  may  be  selected, 
but  should  follow  the  above  lines  with  this  exception. 

Such  a  steel  is  well  worth  a  place  in  any  expert  angler’s 
kit. 


The  Split  Bamboo — An  Ideal  Short  Rod 

There  is  no  question  but  that  the  split  bamboo  caster 
is  the  ideal  rod  for  the  most  exacting  work.  No  material, 
unless  it  be  an  occasional  bit  of  bethabara  or  of  hickory, 
can  equal  its  action  in  all  those  little  fine  points  that  are 
so  dear  to  the  expert  rod  artist.  But  a  bamboo  rod  must 
be  a  good  one,  a  mighty  good  one,  or  it  will  not  merit 
rating  over  other  rod  materials.  Good  bamboo,  the  high¬ 
est  quality  bamboo,  must  be  well  selected,  long  cured  and 
painstakingly  matched  in  order  that  the  finished  rod  may 
have  that  wonderful  action  which  has  made  the  name 
split  bamboo  so  famous. 

Unless  the  angler  is  prepared  to  pay  from  fifteen  to 
twenty-five  dollars  for  a  bamboo  caster,  he  cannot  ex¬ 
pect  to  secure  a  rod  that  will  be  markedly  superior  in 
action  and  staying  qualities  to  other  rod  materials  when 
made  into  high  quality  rods.  For  this  reason  the  steel  is 
a  favorite  selection  when  the  price  element  must  be  taken 
into  consideration.  Ten  dollars  will,  however,  buy  a 
serviceable  bamboo  caster. 

There  is  no  question  either  but  that  the  proper  type 
for  a  bamboo  rod  is  to  be  found  in  the  one-piece  construc¬ 
tion.  Such  a  rod  gives  all  the  action  of  the  bamboo  with¬ 
out  the  stiffening  effect  of  a  metal  ferrule.  The  next 
best  type  is,  in  our  estimation,  the  long  tip  and  short  butt, 
especially  in  the  lighter  rods,  for  this  puts  the  ferrule 
well  down  on  the  heavier  butt  joint  and  does  not  break 


12 


BAIT  CASTING 


up  the  essential  tip  action.  In  casting  rods  of  ordinary 
weights  this  is  not  so  necessary,  and  we  have  cast  with 
equal  joint  rods  that  did  beautiful  work.  The  three- 
piece  bait-casting  rod  is  the  limit  that  one  should  go  in 
the  number  of  joints.  Ferrules  are  weak  spots  and  action 
spoiling  areas,  and  every  added  ferrule  departs  from  the 
excellent  action  of  the  one-piece  ideal  type. 

For  ordinary  casting  the  bamboo  should  weigh  in  the 
neighborhood  of  five  and  one-half  ounces.  High  quality 
and  high-priced  rods  can  afford  to  approach  the  five-ounce 
weight,  but  the  cheaper  bamboo  should  be  selected  from 
weights  close  to  six  ounces.  One  maker  of  medium-priced 
rods  of  high  casting  efficiency  weighs  out  all  standard 
rods  at  five  and  three-quarter  ounces,  and  this  is  a  very 
good  weight  for  a  ten  to  fifteen  dollar  rod  designed  to 
cast  the  ordinary  plugs,  frogs  and  to  do  an  occasional 
bit  of  trolling  or  other  semi-rough  work. 

In  general  equipment  the  bamboo  will  be  fitted  out  in 
a  manner  similar  to  that  described  under  the  general  pur¬ 
pose  steel,  with  the  exception  that  a  locking  reel  band 
is  usually  used  in  place  of  a  band  with  finger  hook.  It 
is  seldom  that  one  sees  a  bamboo  with  a  finger  hook  or 
with  a  solid  large  hole  top — practically  all  being  fitted 
with  the  offset  type  top.  Lengths  will  run  the  same — 
the  five-foot  being  a  standard  length  for  most  work,  while 
there  are  many  experimental  rods  made  in  the  four-foot 
ten  length  that  just  about  reach  casting  perfection  with 
ordinary  plugs  and  frogs. 

Solid  Wood  Rods 

Solid  wood  bait-casting  rods  are  not  in  favor  in  Amer¬ 
ica  to  any  marked  extent  because  of  the  fact  that  they 
are  inclined  to  take  a  set  under  ordinary  strain,  will  warp 
if  the  varnish  happens  to  permit  the  least  bit  of  moisture 
to  penetrate,  and  will  even  show  the  effects  of  changes 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 


13 


in  the  weather.  Still  there  are  some  anglers  who  delight 
in  the  solid  wood  rod,  and  one  frequently  sees  a  nice 
bethabara  or  greenheart,  but  it  is  usually  in  a  rod  cabinet 
and  not  on  fish  producing  water. 

We  know  that  in  speaking  of  solid  wood  rods  we 
should  laud  noibwood  (educated  bethabara),  bethabara 
and  greenheart  and  criticise  lancewood — such  a  treatment 
would  be  the  “customary”  thing  to  do.  But  we  are  go¬ 
ing  to  say  that  the  best  solid  wood  caster  we  have  ever 
used  was  a  de  luxe  hickory  closely  followed  by  a  bethab¬ 
ara.  We  agree  with  the  great  majority  in  the  belief 
that  hickory  ordinarily  does  make  a  veiy  poor  rod  unless 
the  calibre  be  sufficiently  large  to  do  away  with  the  tend¬ 
ency  to  set  under  strain.  But  there  is  one  rod  made  in 
the  Middle  West  that  is  full  of  pep  and  action.  The 
casting  power  of  this  rod,  even  in  the  four  and  one-half 
foot  length,  is  remarkable.  The  tendency  to  set  has  been 
done  away  with  to  a  marked  degree  and  we  believe  that 
it  is  the  strongest  solid  wood  rod  made.  Being  a  very 
“whippy”  wood,  it  can  well  be  made  in  shorter  lengths 
and  with  a  larger  calibre  than  most  wood  rods  approach¬ 
ing  it  in  action.  Realization  of  this  fact  has  produced  a 
solid  wood  rod  that  is,  in  our  opinion,  superior  to 
bethabara  or  greenheart  for  ordinary  casting  purposes, 
and  a  four  and  one-half  foot  hickory  will  equal  the 
action  of  the  other  two  when  built  in  the  five-foot  length. 

The  bait-caster  should  not  pin  his  faith  to  solid  wood 
unless  he  is  willing  to  pay  real  money  for  a  rod  of  this 
material.  It  must  be  of  extra  special  selection,  only  one 
stick  in  hundreds  being  “right,”  must  be  processed  to 
overcome  strain,  must  be  tapered  to  a  particular  size  for 
the  wood  in  question,  and  must  be  built  in  a  factory  where 
the  shortcomings  of  the  special  wood  are  known  from 
long  experience  in  building  rods  of  solid  wood.  Such  a 
rod  will  cost  from  fifteen  to  twenty  dollars,  whether  it 


The  completion  of  a  snappy  set.  No  need  to  make  a  full  arm 

swing  in  setting  the  hook 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 


15 


be  hickory,  greenheart  or  bethabara.  A  low-priced  solid 
wood  bait-casting  rod  is  worthless  no  matter  what  the 
material  may  be. 

Solid  wood  rods  must  be  kept  well  varnished  at  all 
times  and  hung  from  their  tips  with  a  weight  tied  to  the 
butt  when  not  in  use,  to  avoid  a  partial  set  becoming 
permanent. 

Light  W eight  Casters 

There  is  a  growing  class  of  bait-casters  who  are  inter¬ 
ested  in  the  casting  of  very  light  lures,  such  as  spoons, 
spinners,  light  pork  rinds  and  the  very  lightest  of  plugs — 
lures  weighing  about  the  one-quarter  ounce  weight. 
There  is  really  but  one  rod  material  that  at  the  present 
time  is  satisfactory  for  this  work,  though  a  second  is  a 
possibility  in  the  near  future.  Solid  woods,  if  made  light 
and  whippy  enough  to  cast  these  lightest  offerings,  will 
set  far  too  easily  to  be  worth  while.  Steel  can  be  used, 
and  will  be,  but  even  expert  casters  are  apt  to  abuse  a 
steel  rod  and  give  it  a  punishment  that  it  will  not  stand, 
just  because  it  is  steel.  The  result  is  that  only  the  high¬ 
est  grade  of  split  bamboo  is  used  in  the  making  of  light¬ 
weight  casters  of  merit. 

We  have  experimented  a  great  deal  in  this  matter  of 
perfecting  the  proper  length,  calibre  and  taper  of  a  light¬ 
weight  bait-casting  rod  and  have  reached  the  conclusion 
that  a  four-ounce  rod  of  six  strip  split  bamboo,  specially 
tapered  to  a  five-foot  two  length  and  made  up  in  the 
short  butt,  long  tip  design,  that  such  a  rod  is  the  ideal 
light-weight  bait-casting  tool.  We  desired  to  build  a 
five-foot  rod,  but  it  must  be  kept  in  mind  that  while  five 
feet  is  the  ideal  bait-casting  length,  there  are  other  points 
to  be  considered  in  the  construction  of  a  rod  to  handle 
the  lightest  lures.  Not  only  must  the  rod  be  a  good 
caster,  and  such  a  rod  can  be  built  in  the  five-foot  length, 


Beginning  and  end  of  a  right-hand  right  lateral  cast.  Reel 
rides  on  head-plate  bearings 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  ROD 


17 


but  it  must  also  possess  sufficient  backbone  to  set  the  barb 
cleanly  without  undue  strain,  must  take  just  the  right 
bend  under  fish  strain  to  permit  of  expert  playing  from 
the  reel,  and  must  be  stiff  enough  to  recover  quickly  when 
the  fish  tries  for  slack  by  a  quick  departure  from  the  water 
in  taking  the  air. 

There  is  no  question  but  that  the  five-foot  two,  four- 
ounce  rod,  of  first  quality  split  bamboo  embodies  all  these 
requirements  to  the  fullest  extent  and  in  a  manner  not 
to  be  approached  by  a  longer  or  a  shorter  rod.  Light 
weight  tournament  requirements  do  not  enter  the  mat¬ 
ter  in  any  particular  and  are  not  to  be  considered.  The 
tournament  caster  has  his  own  casting  ideals  to  satisfy, 
not  playing  from  the  reel  ideals  as  well. 

T ournament  Rods 

We  shall  have  practically  nothing  to  say  in  this  treat¬ 
ment  of  bait-casting  equipment  anent  tournament  rods, 
for  it  is  a  well-known  fact  that  tournament  casters  differ 
greatly  in  their  ideas  concerning  the  proper  length,  weight 
and  calibre  of  the  ideal  rod  for  this  work.  Also  tourna¬ 
ment  casting  is  not  bait-casting  for  fish,  hence  the  rod 
is  called  upon  to  deliver  the  weight  only.  There  is  neither 
setting  of  the  hook  nor  playing  from  the  reel — there  is 
no  fish  at  the  end  of  the  line.  Whatever  weights,  calibres 
and  lengths  seem  to  suit  the  individual  caster,  these  are 
right  in  so  far  as  they  fall  within  the  limits  of  the  gen¬ 
erous  rules  for  this  sport. 

Tournament  events  are  usually  of  the  following 
classes:  Distance  ounce,  distance  ounce,  distance 
fisherman’s  plug;  accuracy  ounce,  accuracy  J4  ounce 
and  accuracy  fisherman’s  plug.  Among  the  more  common 
lengths  and  weights  seen  in  action  in  the  regular  tourna- 


IS 


BAIT  CASTING 


ments,  though  by  no  means  are  all  dimensions  given,  will 
be  found  the  following: 

34  Ounce  Events: 

5  feet,  six  inches,  5^4  ounces 

5  feet,  eight  inches,  5 34  ounces 

6  feet,  4  ounces 
6  feet,  5 34  ounces 
6  feet,  534  ounces 

6  feet,  three  inches,  4^4  ounces 
6  feet,  three  inches,  5^4  ounces 
34  Ounce  Events 
5  feet,  six  inches,  4^4  ounces 

5  feet,  eight  inches,  534  ounces 

6  feet,  434  ounces 
6  feet,  534  ounces 
6  feet,  534  ounces 

Fisherman’s  Plug: 

Rather  stiff  rod  in  above  lengths 
and  weights,  usually  similar  to  the 
34  ounce  events. 

There  is  a  tendency  to  use  a  shorter  and  stiffer  rod  in 
the  distance  events  and  a  longer,  more  whippy  rod  in  the 
accuracy  events,  but  there  is  no  uniformity  about  the 
matter  at  all.  It  all  depends  upon  the  whims  of  the 
casters  themselves  and  their  ability  with  certain  lengths, 
weights  and  calibres. 

Tournament  casting  is  excellent  sport,  develops  skill 
with  the  short  rod,  and  soon  determines  what  rods  pos¬ 
sess  quality.  The  ordinary  angler  should  mix  a  little 
tournament  work  in  with  his  regular  fishing  for  he  will 
benefit  greatly  by  being  associated  with  excellent  casters, 
and  most  of  the  “top  notch”  boys  are  glad  to  give  advice 
to  the  beginner. 


Chapter  II 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  REEL 

Why  a  Quadruple  Multiplier 

THE  BAIT-CASTING  reel  is  a  quadruple  multiply¬ 
ing  reel  always.  Reels  may  be  single  action,  double 
multipliers,  treble  multipliers,  quadruple  multipliers  and 
on  up  to  the  nine  multiplier  which  was  on  the  market 
years  ago — that  is,  they  can  be  made  in  any  multiplying 
pattern  desired.  Few,  however,  depart  very  much  from 
the  single  action  for  fly  fishing,  the  double  action  for 
heavy  work,  and  the  quadruple  for  bait-casting. 

A  quadruple  multiplier  is  a  reel,  the  spool  of  which 
revolves  four  times  to  every  revolution  of  the  handle. 
In  other  words,  when  the  handle  is  turned  the  spool  goes 
around  four  times  as  fast  as  the  handle  spins.  Examina¬ 
tion  of  a  large  number  of  reels  will  show  that  “quads” 
are  not  all  perfect.  Some  will  do  little  better  than  three, 
some  exactly  four,  and  some  spin  close  to  five — but  in 
practice  they  are  called  “quads,”  and  most  first  quality 
reels  will  approach  the  “four  times  to  the  handle’s  once” 
closely. 

A  reel  of  this  type  is  chosen  for  bait-casting  because 
the  leverage  gained  is  just  right  in  comparison  to  the 
speed  of  getting  in  the  line.  Playing  from  the  reel, 
against  the  ordinary  fish  that  one  captures  with  a  bait¬ 
casting  outfit,  reaches  its  highest  possibilities  with  the 
“four  to  one”  reel;  the  handling  of  a  lure  in  the  water 
in  a  fish-taking  manner  demands  the  same  type;  and  the 
outgoing  lure,  before  the  days  of  the  free  spool,  could 
pull  the  line  from  the  spool  best  when  the  handle  was 


19 


20 


BAIT  CASTING 


not  geared  below  the  quarter  revolution.  Hence  a  quad¬ 
ruple  multiplier  always  for  bait-casting. 

Reel  Materials 

The  better  bait-casting  reels  are,  almost  without  ex¬ 
ception,  made  of  german  silver  or  other  similar  alloy. 
It  is  only  the  lower  priced  products  that  are  made  of 
nickel-plated  brass,  and  while  some  very  good  nickel- 
plated  reels  are  on  the  market,  anglers  generally  demand 
the  white  metal  alloy  because  it  can  be  burnished  back 
to  its  original  luster  on  tarnishing.  Some  bait-casting 
reels  have  hard  rubber  end  plates.  Such  material  is  of 
value  in  that  it  makes  a  lighter  reel  and  avoids  the  glit¬ 
ter  of  bright  metal.  The  former  point  is  of  value  in 
heavy  salt-water  reels,  the  latter  in  fly-casting  winches — 
the  rubber  end  plate  bait-casting  reels  being  of  no  spe¬ 
cial  value  to  the  bait-caster  save  as  a  matter  of  choice. 
Weight  is  not  an  item  and  the  cast  is  so  long  that  the 
glitter  can  be  dimmed  sufficiently  by  a  “satin”  or  dull 
finish. 

The  Standard  Caster 

The  standard  bait-casting  reel  is  a  quadruple  mulitply- 
ing  reel  with  a  long  spoon — popularly  termed  a  Kentucky 
Pattern.  It  is  customarily  supplied  with  a  drag  (friction 
on  the  spool)  as  well  as  a  click  (pawl  and  ratchet  fric¬ 
tion),  although  many  of  the  higher  priced  reels  may  have 
only  the  click  or  be  without  either.  Neither  the  click 
nor  the  drag  is  to  be  used  in  bait  casting — they  serve 
only  as  a  means  of  keeping  the  spool  from  spinning  freely 
when  the  angler  is  “doing  something  else”  or  when  the 
reel  is  used  for  trolling  purposes. 

The  casting  reel  is  usually  made  in  sixty,  eighty  and 
one  hundred  yard  sizes,  and  the  capacity  of  the  reel  is 
measured  by  a  number  five  line.  Since  lines  are  variously 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  REEL 


21 


listed  as  to  sizes,  it  may  be  said  that  a  number  five  will 
test  in  the  neighborhood  of  twelve  pounds  breaking 
strength.  Some  bait-casting  reels  are  larger,  even  up 
to  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards,  while  some  are  as  small 
as  forty  yards  capacity.  Eighty  makes  a  nice  size  for 
general  use,  yet  many  prefer  the  full  one  hundred  yard 
size  for  ordinary  casting  purposes. 

Since  the  spool  must  spin  freely  and  without  friction, 
high  quality  reels  are  usually  fitted  with  jewelled  bear¬ 
ings,  especially  jewelled  caps  to  take  the  end  thrust,  while 
some  have  additional  jewelled  bushings.  Bronze  bush¬ 
ings  are  used  in  the  more  moderately  priced  high  quality 
reels,  and  there  is  no  question  but  that  they  are  fully  as 
good  as  jewelled  bushings  so  far  as  all  practical  purposes 
are  concerned. 

Some  of  the  more  moderately  priced  reels  have  a  very 
simple  take-apart  mechanism  which  permits  of  easy  clean¬ 
ing  and  oiling  without  the  removal  of  any  screws  or  the 
changing  of  the  adjustments.  This  is  a  very  handy  fea¬ 
ture.  The  older  reels  of  standard  make  and  watchlike 
precision  are  built  in  a  solid  manner,  but  are  so  closely 
fitted  that  it  is  seldom  necessary  to  take  them  down  under 
ordinary  casting  conditions  and  barring  accidents.  If 
kept  well  oiled,  just  a  drop  at  a  time,  they  will  give  no 
trouble. 

Bait-casting  reels  have  a  single  balanced  handle,  or  a 
double  handle,  or  are  free  spool.  In  the  latter  case  the 
handle  does  not  spin  as  the  line  runs  out  but  the  spool 
is  again  picked  up  when  reeling  begins.  Most  modern 
free  spool  reels  are  positive  in  their  action. 

Level-Winders  and  Self-Thumbers 

To  avoid  the  necessity  of  spooling  the  line  by  hand, 
reel  manufacturers  have  developed  several  attachments 
that  take  care  of  this  work  in  a  first-class  manner.  Reels 


Beginning  and  end  of  a  right-hand  left  lateral  cast.  Reel 
rides  on  tail-plate  bearings 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  REEL 


23 


so  equipped  are  called  level-winders.  There  is  no  ques¬ 
tion  but  that  a  level-winding  attachment  is  a  great  help 
under  a  variety  of  conditions.  It  permits  the  angler  to 
give  his  full  attention  to  the  fighting  fish  or  the  incom¬ 
ing  lure;  a  back-lash  is  partially  avoided,  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  line  is  properly  spooled  and  does  not  pile  up 
at  any  point;  and  for  the  angler  who  is  not  schooled  in 
the  proper  manipulation  of  the  incoming  line,  these  reels 
are  a  source  of  joy,  since  they  aid  materially  in  a  day’s 
casting. 

Some  reels  are  fitted  with  built-in  attachments  to 
thumb  the  spool  and  to  stop  its  forward  motion  just  as 
soon  as  the  line  ceases  its  forward  pull.  Such  reels  are 
styled  self-thumbers  or  anti-back-lash  reels.  Naturally 
these  reels  also  find  favor  in  the  hands  of  both  expert 
casters  and  amateurs.  While  most  good  casters  prefer 
to  use  the  standard  open  casting  reel  under  normal  con¬ 
ditions,  there  are  times  when  a  self-thumbing  feature  is 
very  much  worth  while  and  aids  materially  in  the  pre¬ 
vention  of  the  dreaded  back-lash.  For  night  casting  espe¬ 
cially  they  find  a  place  in  every  knowing  angler’s  kit,  and 
for  shooting  a  lure  all  day  into  the  teeth  of  a  heavy  wind 
they  are  also  fine.  Naturally,  the  man  who  has  not 
learned  to  cast  with  ease,  the  week-end  vacationer,  such 
a  man  can  get  a  full  day’s  sport  and  do  just  as  good  cast¬ 
ing  as  can  the  expert  who  knows  how  to  apply  the  thumb 
properly. 

Then  come  the  “do  it  all”  reels — the  self-thumbing- 
self-spooling  reels  that  do  everything  but  make  the  cast. 
These  are  the  so-called  “highly  educated”  reels  that  are 
wonderful  night  casting  winches  and  that  make  bait¬ 
casting  possible  to  the  man  who  has  not  time  to  learn  the 
thumbing  and  spooling  part  of  this  strenuous  game.  They 
are  well  worth  while,  for  the  whole  family  can  lay  a 
good  line  without  trouble.  Naturally,  a  good  bait-caster 


Grip  the  rod  with  palm  and  fingers.  Thumb  should  be  relaxed 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  REEL 


25 


will  use  his  standard  caster  most,  for  he  likes  to  feel 
that  he  has  mastered  the  difficult  parts  of  the  casting 
game.  Nevertheless  he  will  have  a  good  word  for  these 
excellent  reels  and  will  use  them  when  the  occasion  arises, 
for  he  knows  their  place  and  the  excellent  manner  in 
which  they  fill  it. 

The  T ournament  Reel 

Little  need  be  said  of  the  bait-casting  reel  in  a  tourna¬ 
ment  model,  for  tournament  reels  are  simply  first  qual¬ 
ity  bait-casting  reels  with  a  few  extras,  such  as  the  caster 
may  wish.  Commonly  reels  for  this  work  are  fitted  with 
a  cork  arbor  which  builds  up  the  spool  to  a  larger  diam¬ 
eter;  the  spool  may  be  built  of  aluminum  and  the  handle 
as  well;  jewelled  bearings  are  customary  and  both  click 
and  drag  may  be  absent,  although  the  click  is  often  re¬ 
tained  merely  to  keep  the  spool  from  running  free  when 
not  in  use. 

The  light  test  tournament  lines,  five  and  eight  pounds 
as  a  usual  thing,  do  not  take  up  much  room  on  the  reel, 
hence  the  use  of  a  large  diameter  spool,  and  the  lightness 
of  a  cork  and  aluminum  spool  and  handle  both  make  for 
excellent  performance. 

Tournament  reels  are  not  necessarily  high  priced 
winches,  for  some  of  them  fall  well  within  the  reach  of 
the  average  angler’s  pocketbook.  Naturally,  however, 
men  who  follow  the  tournament  game  desire  the  best  that 
can  be  obtained,  and  some  of  the  patterns  seen  on  the 
casting  platforms  are  certainly  things  “of  beauty  and 
joys  forever.” 

The  Indiana  Pattern  Reel 

The  Indiana  Pattern  reel  differs  from  the  Kentucky 
Pattern  in  that  it  is  a  single  action  reel  of  large  diam¬ 
eter.  It  is  a  radical  departure  from  the  ordinary  bait- 


26 


BAIT  CASTING 


casting  reel  in  that  it  is  simply  a  large  spiderlike  revolv¬ 
ing  disk  that  picks  up  about  eighteen  inches  of  line  at 
each  revolution  of  the  handle.  These  reels  are  mainly 
equipped  to  be  anti-back-lash  and  their  very  nature  makes 
them  self-spooling.  One  of  their  best  features  is  the  fact 
that  they  dry  the  line  quickly,  due  to  their  wide  open 
build  and  broad  diameter.  Most  of  them  may  be 
thumbed  if  the  angler  so  desires. 

Many  fishermen  hold  these  large  diameter  reels  in 
high  favor  since  they  make  it  possible  for  an  amateur  to 
make  excellent  casts  with  a  minimum  of  practice,  and 
they  can  be  used  in  the  casting  of  the  lightest  lures. 
Anglers  who  have  been  brought  up  on  the  Kentucky  Pat¬ 
tern  reel  will,  naturally,  favor  the  long  spool  quad,  and 
it  is  doubtful  if  the  large  reels  will  ever  take  the  place 
of  this  pattern  for  many  reasons,  chief  among  which  is 
the  fact  that  they  are  difficult  to  pack  and  carry. 

That  they  do  good  work  goes  without  saying,  and  their 
low  price  is  attractive. 


Chapter  III 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  LINE 
Material 

THERE  IS  only  one  material  that  can  be  used  suc¬ 
cessfully  in  the  manufacture  of  bait-casting  lines, 
and  that  is  silk.  Cotton  and  linen  both  swell  when  wet 
and  pick  up  a  great  amount  of  water.  For  this  reason 
only  the  best  quality  of  silk  is  used  in  the  building  of 
lines  for  the  short  rod.  When  we  say  best  quality  we 
mean  just  that  and  no  less,  for  there  are  a  great  many 
different  grades  of  silk,  only  a  very  few  of  which  are 
suited  to  the  work  in  hand.  We  would  emphasize  this 
point  so  that  the  angler  may  know  how  necessary  it  is 
to  purchase  lines  from  a  reliable  line  manufacturer.  It 
is  possible  to  buy  very  cheap  silk  lines — lines  not  worth 
the  consideration  of  the  caster  at  any  price. 

Most  bait-casting  lines  are  untreated  in  any  manner. 
Some,  however,  are  treated  with  a  waterproof  dressing. 
The  dressing  for  a  casting  line  must  be  of  such  a  na¬ 
ture  that  it  does  not  stiffen  it  in  any  particular,  other¬ 
wise  it  will  be  unfit  for  use.  Oiled  and  enameled  lines 
can  not  be  used  for  bait-casting,  although  they  both 
make  excellent  trolling  lines  and  may  be  spooled  on 
the  quad  for  this  purpose. 

Untreated  silk  lines  must  always  be  dried  thoroughly 
after  use,  dried  in  the  shade,  otherwise  they  will  become 
weak  quickly.  Silk  is  animal  material  and  must  be  kept 
dry  if  it  is  to  give  the  desired  service. 

Braids 

Bait-casting  lines  are  always  braided,  never  twisted. 
There  are  three  standard  braids:  Soft,  medium  and  hard. 


27 


28 


BAIT  CASTING 


Other  things  being  equal,  the  softer  the  braid  the  bet¬ 
ter  will  it  cast;  consequently  the  line  for  the  finest  type 
of  casting  is  a  soft-braided  silk.  Lines  may  be  braided 
either  round  or  square,  and  while  a  great  many  prefer 
the  square  braid  because  it  does  not  tend  to  flatten,  either 
will  give  good  satisfaction  during  the  average  length  of 
a  bait-casting  line’s  life.  Soft  braids  are  less  durable  than 
medium  and  hard-braided  lines  but  they  are  better  cast¬ 
ers.  The  harder  the  braid  the  more  durable,  all  else 
being  equal. 

The  stronger  bait-casting  lines  are  often  braided  upon 
a  core;  this  tends  to  keep  them  round  as  well  as  to  in¬ 
crease  their  strength.  It  also  increases  the  stiffness  of 
the  line  to  some  extent,  hence  it  is  desirable  that  the 
core  be  absent  from  the  lightest  soft  braids. 

Medium-braided  lines  may  be  used  for  the  medium 
to  heavy  lures,  as  may  also  the  smaller  hard  braids — 
though  a  very  hard-braided  line  makes  a  better  trolling 
line  than  a  caster.  The  harder  the  braid  the  less  easily 
will  it  run  from  the  reel,  hence  the  selection  of  a  soft- 
braided  silk  of  low  test  breaking  strength  as  the  ideal 
bait-casting  line  for  light  lures. 

Colors 

There  are  many  different  color  patterns  used  in  the 
manufacture  of  lines — because  the  angler  has  a  fancy  for 
certain  colors  and  the  manufacturers  catch  anglers  not 
fish.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  most  color  combinations  are 
dark  and  practically  the  same  color  when  in  the  water. 

The  standard  color  for  a  casting  line  is  white  ticked 
with  black.  This  combination  is  gray  when  wet  and  is 
about  as  good  as  can  be  selected  for  practically  all  work. 
Some  waters  demand  a  white  line,  and  occasionally  a 
black  line  may  be  indicated;  but  as  a  rule,  the  color  of 
the  line  makes  little  difference,  and  the  angler  may  se- 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  LINE 


29 


lect  any  pattern  that  appeals  to  his  own  fancy  with  the 
assurance  that  it  will  be  highly  satisfactory. 

Sizes 

Bait-casting  lines  should  be  of  small  diameter  and  low 
test  breaking  strength.  Such  lines  cast  to  the  best  ad¬ 
vantage.  The  great  majority  of  bait-casters  select  a  line 
that  is  far  too  strong  and  their  casting  suffers  as  a  re¬ 
sult.  The  more  expert  the  caster  becomes  the  lighter 
will  be  the  line  used.  For  light,  medium  and  heavy  lures 
such  an  angler  will  select  an  eight,  ten  and  twelve-pound 
test  line.  A  plain,  every-day  good  caster  will  choose  the 
ten,  twelve  and  fourteen.  The  ordinary  angler  should 
not  go  over  the  twelve,  fourteen  and  sixteen-pound  tests 
unless  after  big  pike  and  muskellonge,  when  an  eighteen 
to  twenty-pound  test  will  be  strong  enough. 

It  is  most  ridiculous  to  see  a  man  trying  to  cast  light 
lures  for  bass  with  a  line  testing  from  twenty  to  thirty 
pounds — a  line  strong  enough  to  hold  a  tarpon  or  a  tuna 
of  reasonable  size.  A  light  line  for  successful  bait-casting 
always. 

Casting  Leaders 

When  bait-casting  for  bass,  with  no  danger  of  pick¬ 
ing  up  a  pike  or  muskellonge,  no  leader  is  necessary,  the 
line  being  looped  directly  to  the  lure.  But  when  there 
is  a  possibility  of  connecting  with  fish  possessing  sharp 
teeth,  it  is  the  part  of  wisdom  to  make  use  of  a  wire  or 
gimp  leader.  There  are  leaders  on  the  market  that  are 
flexible  and  equipped  with  a  snap  for  lure  attachment 
that  will  save  the  day  under  such  circumstances.  It  is 
not  necessary  that  these  leaders  be  overly  long.  Four, 
six  or  eight  inches  will  put  the  line  out  of  danger  unless 
the  flsh  are  running  very  large.  We  would  not  advise 


30 


BAIT  CASTING 


over  ten  inches — twelve  at  the  outside — for  the  fish  in 
the  average  fishing  territory. 

For  the  casting  of  very  light  lures  it  is  often  well  to 
use  a  leader  of  gut,  and  for  this  purpose  short  lengths  of 
gut  substitute  will  be  found  excellent.  This  material  will 
stand  a  great  deal  of  chewing  on  the  part  of  a  pike  and 
will  give  the  angler  an  opportunity  to  save  his  lure  as 
well  as  the  fish  frequently.  As  a  rule,  however,  no  leader 
is  necessary  in  bait-casting  for  bass,  even  though  an  oc¬ 
casional  wall-eye  or  pike  will  be  hooked.  Should  this 
occur,  break  off  the  looped  end  of  the  line  and  start  cast¬ 
ing  with  a  fresh  knot. 


Chapter  IV 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 

Rigging  the  Rod 

IN  RIGGING  up  the  bait-casting  rod  preparatory  to 
making  a  cast  there  are  two  points  that  should  always 
be  kept  in  mind:  The  first,  that  all  guides  must  be  in 
line  with  the  flat  side  of  the  reel  seat;  the  second,  that 
sooner  or  later  the  rod  must  again  be  taken  down.  To 
make  the  latter  work  easy  and  to  avoid  sticking  ferrules, 
it  is  wise  to  rub  the  male  ferrule  through  the  hair  a 
few  times  to  give  it  a  thin  coating  of  oil.  If  the  angler 
will  do  this  every  time  the  rod  is  put  together  there  will 
be  little  opportunity,  or  necessity,  to  twist  and  pull  on  a 
balky  joint.  The  slight  film  applied  by  contact  with  the 
hair  and  scalp  is  sufficient  to  make  the  joints  slip  with 
ease.  Telescopic  rods  must,  of  course,  be  kept  well  coated 
with  a  high-grade  thin  oil  to  keep  them  from  binding  and 
rusting  internally. 

The  reel  should  be  firmly  fastened  to  its  seat  by  press¬ 
ing  the  reel  band  well  over  the  rod  clip  and  by  turning 
it  a  quarter  turn  to  one  side,  if  the  band  is  of  the  locking 
variety.  Some  rods  have  the  reel  band  above  the  reel, 
others  below.  If  above,  it  should  be  of  the  locking  va¬ 
riety  or  else  carry  a  finger  hook;  if  below,  a  locking 
variety  is  desirable,  but  not  an  absolute  requirement,  since 
the  thumb  pressure  during  the  cast  keeps  the  rod  clip 
well  fitted  in  its  stationary  band  and  the  free  band  does 
not  work  loose  with  any  degree  of  frequency. 

After  the  reel  has  been  placed  in  position,  with  the 
handle  on  the  right  when  the  reel  is  uppermost,  the  line 
is  drawn  out  toward  the  guides  over  the  side-pillar — 


31 


32 


BAIT  CASTING 


that  is,  between  the  top-pillar  and  the  front  side-pillar. 
Never  pull  the  line  out  under  this  side-pillar,  for  the 
line,  in  leaving  the  reel,  is  thrown  upward  by  the  re¬ 
volving  spool  and  must  have  considerable  up  and  down 
play  to  run  freely.  The  line  may  now  be  threaded 
through  the  guides  and  out  through  the  tip  top,  using 
care  that  it  runs  in  a  straight  line  and  is  not  wound 
around  the  rod  at  any  point.  Make  a  five-inch  casting 
loop  in  the  end  of  the  line,  loop  this  to  a  short  snap 
swivel,  attaching  this  to  the  eye  ring  of  the  lure  to  be 
used,  and  the  rod  is  ready  for  action. 

Thumbing  the  Reel 

Proper  thumbing  of  the  reel  is  one  of  the  most  impor¬ 
tant  parts  of  the  bait-casting  process.  Not  that  thumb¬ 
ing  is  at  all  difficult,  far  from  it,  but  it  is  an  act  that 
must  be  practised  over  and  over  again  until  it  becomes 
automatic  or  reflex.  Writers  frequently  speak  of  an 
“educated  thumb”  in  bait-casting,  and  they  mean  by  this 
statement  that  the  thumb  governs  the  motion  of  the  spool 
through  the  sense  of  touch  and  that  it  instantly  applies 
the  proper  pressure  without  the  angler  giving  the  slightest 
attention  to  the  outgoing  line.  This  can  only  be  accom¬ 
plished  through  practice  and  more  practice;  but  when 
once  learned,  the  difficulty  vanishes  and  thumbing  the 
reel  is  just  about  as  automatic  a  process  as  is  the  work 
of  the  best  self-thumbing  or  anti-back-lash  mechanism. 

There  are  two  methods  of  thumbing — thumbing  the 
line  and  thumbing  the  end  drum  or  head  of  the  spool. 
In  thumbing  the  line  the  rod  is  grasped  firmly,  with  the 
thumb  resting  on  the  center  of  the  rear  side-pillar  and 
shoved  over  this  pillar  far  enough  to  permit  exerting 
some  pressure  upon  the  line  as  it  lies  upon  the  spool. 
The  grip  should  be  mainly  a  palm  and  finger  tightening, 
for  the  thumb  should  be  more  or  less  relaxed  so  that  it 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


33 


may  be  rocked  back  and  forth  over  the  pillar  as  the  van¬ 
ishing  line  may  demand.  While  this  style  of  thumbing 
is  the  more  commonly  used,  it  nevertheless  works  a  hard¬ 
ship  on  the  angler’s  thumb,  if  much  casting  is  done,  and 
we  would  recommend  that  the  end  drum  style  be 
mastered. 

In  thumbing  the  end  drum  or  spool  head  the  reel 
is  turned  a  bit  more  toward  the  left  when  the  grip  is 
taken  and  the  thumb  is  applied  to  the  end  drum  in  the 
angle  formed  by  the  pillar  and  tail  plate.  Less  pressure 
is  needed  to  govern  the  line  when  this  style  of  thumb¬ 
ing  is  employed;  the  end  drum  offers  a  stationary  object 
to  which  the  pressure  may  be  applied;  and  the  smooth 
metal  can  spin  against  the  thumb  throughout  the  day 
without  causing  irritation.  The  angler,  in  first  trying 
this  style  of  thumbing,  will  check  his  lure  too  much  and 
short  casts  will  result,  but  after  the  knack  of  the  new 
style  is  mastered,  we  feel  confident  that  better  results 
will  obtain  than  when  line  thumbing  is  employed.  This 
should  be  practised  until  the  thumb  muscles  are  not 
tensed  by  the  grip  required  to  hold  the  rod — the  proper 
grip  is  a  flexible  one  always. 

In  starting  the  cast,  the  thumb  is  applied  firmly  to  the 
line  or  end  drum  to  keep  the  spool  from  revolving,  and 
this  pressure  is  maintained  until  the  rod  has  been  brought 
sharply  forward  and  the  lure  thus  given  direction.  The 
position  from  which  this  motion  is  started  will  vary  with 
the  type  of  cast  used  and  will  be  mentioned  in  detail 
later,  although  the  rod  is  usually  dropped  back  over 
the  right  shoulder  to  an  almost  horizontal  position  when 
starting  the  cast.  From  this  position  it  is  brought  sharply 
forward  and  stopped  at  approximately  a  forty-five  degree 
angle,  the  arm  being  thrust  forward  as  the  motion  is  . 
completed  until  fully  extended,  and  the  rod  is  made  to 
point  in  the  direction  of  the  intended  cast,  with  the  tip 


Grip  for  thumbing  the  line 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING  35 

i 

somewhat  above  the  horizontal.  During  this  movement 
the  thumb  presses  firmy  on  the  spool  until  the  lure  is 
shooting  straight  toward  the  front — just  after  the  rod 
has  passed  the  angler’s  head  and  is  traveling  straight  out 
as  the  arm  is  being  extended — but  is  then  raised  from  the 
spooled  line  sufficiently  to  permit  the  lure  to  pull  the 
line  easily  but  not  free  from  all  pressure .  If  the  angler 
is  thumbing  the  end  drum  the  thumb  will  need  but  lit¬ 
tle  elevation  to  accomplish  this  purpose. 

Should  the  spool  be  released  too  soon  the  lure  will 
fly  high  in  the  air,  due  to  the  fact  that  it  was  traveling 
in  an  upward  direction  when  set  free.  If  held  too  long 
it  will  strike  the  water  directly  in  front  of  the  angler, 
since  it  was  carried  over  in  the  arc  of  a  circle.  Released 
at  the  proper  time  it  will  shoot  straight  forward,  with 
a  bit  of  upward  elevation,  and  drop  to  the  water  easily 
when  the  weight  of  the  lure  ceases  to  pull  more  line 
from  the  spool.  To  master  this  takes  much  practice,  but 
once  acquired,  the  time  element  soon  becomes  second 
nature. 

Too  much  pressure  on  the  line  or  end  drum,  after 
the  lure  has  been  started  on  its  flight,  will  cause  a  short 
cast.  Yet  it  is  far  better  to  use  too  much  pressure  at 
first,  letting  up  a  bit  as  the  cast  is  mastered,  since  too 
little  pressure  permits  the  spool  to  revolve  faster  than 
the  lure  pulls  the  line  away — and  this  is  the  dread  of 
all  bait-casters,  a  back-lash  or  bird's-  nest.  We  shall  give 
a  few  pointers  later  on  how  to  handle  this  angler’s  curse 
when  it  occurs.  Always  keep  some  pressure  on  the  line 
or  end  drum  however  slight  the  need  may  be. 

Making  the  Cast 

THE  OVERHEAD  CAST.  This  is  the  approved 
short  rod  cast,  although  under  actual  fishing  conditions  it 
is  probably  true  that  the  side  cast  (side-swipe)  will  run  it 


36 


BAIT  CASTING 


a  close  race  so  far  as  custom  among  fishermen  is  concerned. 
The  overhead  route  is,  however,  considered  standard  for 
several  reasons:  First,  it  is  the  only  safe  cast  when 
there  are  companions  in  the  boat  or  close  along  the  shore¬ 
line;  second,  it  is  the  only  method  of  gaining  accuracy 
of  lure  placement — the  other  casts  are  too  erratic;  third 
it  is  the  most  difficult,  of  the  three  given,  to  learn  and 
should  be  mastered  first,  since  it  embodies  the  main  prin¬ 
ciples  of  all  casting  with  the  short  rod.  When  the 
angler  has  developed  the  side  cast  first  he  will  find  him¬ 
self  “side-swiping”  about  nine-tenths  of  the  time,  in  places 
where  the  overhead  route  is  not  only  indicated  but  pref¬ 
erable. 

The  overhead  cast  is  not  difficult  to  grasp.  The  ap¬ 
parent  difficulty  lies  only  in  the  fact  that  much  practice 
is  necessary  before  the  angler  will  be  able  to  drop  the 
lure  in  the  desired  spot — and  a  great  deal  of  this  school¬ 
ing  will  be  in  the  education  of  the  thumb.  Soon  the 
caster  will  begin  to  get  the  “feel”  of  the  flying  lure  and 
will  be  able  to  stop  it  easily  and  lightly  whenever  fancy 
may  dictate. 

In  making  this  cast  the  rod  is  dropped  back  over  the 
right  shoulder  largely  by  relaxing  the  muscles  of  the 
wrist,  the  elbow  remaining  in  the  neighborhood  of  the 
waistline.  The  tip  will  fall  somewhat  below  the  hori¬ 
zontal  from  the  shoulder,  but  the  point  from  which  the 
cast  is  started  will  vary  with  the  temperament  of  the 
angler.  A  sharp,  snappy  cast  may  well  be  started  from 
near  the  horizontal,  but  a  slow,  swinging  cast  will  need 
to  begin  well  below  the  horizontal  position. 

Thumbing  the  reel  firmly,  the  rod  is  brought  straight 
over  the  shoulder,  and  when  it  has  reached  the  vertical, 
the  arm  is  shot  straight  out  toward  the  front  as  in  strik¬ 
ing  a  blow — the  rod  being  brought  on  over  to  a  forty- 
five  degree  angle  from  the  head  while  the  arm  is  travel- 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


37 


ing  to  its  extended  position.  Some  casters  carry  on  down 
to  a  nearly  horizontal  position,  finishing  by  pointing  the 
rod  tip  at  the  desired  spot  or  a  few  feet  above  this  spot. 
Being  but  a  matter  of  a  few  inches  we  will  consider  this 
merely  “form.” 

It  is  during  the  time  that  the  rod  is  traveling  straight 
toward  the  front  that  the  thumb  pressure  is  removed  and 
the  lure  given  its  direction  of  flight.  Naturally  there  is 
some  knack  about  this  lessening  of  thumb  pressure,  but 
it  is  nine-tenths  of  the  casting  problem.  With  a  con¬ 
stant  light  control  of  the  line  the  angler  watches  the  fly¬ 
ing  lure  until  it  approaches  the  desired  spot  and  then 
shuts  down  just  a  wee  bit  with  the  thumb.  Checked  in 
the  air  the  lure  hesitates  and  settles  down.  Should  the 
lure  reach  the  water  unchecked,  there  is  a  splash;  should 
the  checking  be  too  sudden,  the  lure  will  jump  back  at 
the  angler  or  be  snapped  off  if  the  cast  has  been  a  strong 
one. 

If  the  angler  has  been  employing  the  line  thumbing 
method,  the  reel  will  finish  the  cast  on  the  upper  side  of 
the  rod  and  only  slightly  tipped  toward  the  left;  but  if 
the  end  drum  has  been  thumbed,  the  reel  should  stand 
practically  on  end  and  be  on  the  left  side  of  the  rod  when 
it  has  reached  its  position  of  rest  after  the  cast.  This 
puts  the  spool  in  the  better  position  for  spinning. 

Keep  this  fact  in  mind  always — it  is  the  wrist  and  the 
forearm  that  do  the  major  part  of  the  work  in  casting. 
Rarely  is  it  necessary  to  use  a  full  arm  swing  .when  cast¬ 
ing  by  the  overhead  route. 

THE  LATERAL  CAST.  This  cast  differs  from  the 
overhead  type  in  but  a  few  particulars.  As  its  name  im¬ 
plies,  it  is  a  side  swing  and  is  frequently  indicated  under 
actual  fishing  conditions.  It  is  of  especial  value  when  cast¬ 
ing  beneath  overhanging  trees,  and,  in  fact,  at  any  time 
when  accuracy  of  placement  is  not  essential.  For  open 


Grip  for  thumbing  end  of  spool 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


39 


water  work  and  where  one  is  just  casting  the  water,  not 
pockets,  it  is  often  used  successfully.  When  desiring  to 
drop  a  heavy  lure  lightly,  it  again  has  a  place;  and  there 
are  others  that  we  might  mention  if  necessary.  Long 
experience  with  this  cast  will  give  one  quite  a  measure  of 
accuracy,  yet  it  is  not  to  be  compared  in  this  particular 
with  the  overhead  route. 

While  the  side  cast  is  mainly  a  wrist  and  forearm  move¬ 
ment,  the  whole  arm  is  brought  more  into  play  than  is 
the  case  in  the  overhead  cast.  Reaching  slightly  behind 
on  either  the  right  or  the  left  side  of  the  body,  the  tip 
is  brought  well  back  of  the  caster  by  bending  the  wrist 
as  far  as  is  possible,  yet  keeping  the  rod  in  a  horizontal 
position  (or  even  above  the  horizontal).  The  cast  is 
then  started  with  a  snappy  wrist  and  forearm  movement, 
followed  by  a  partial  arm  swing.  The  rod  will  end  the 
cast  by  pointing  directly  toward  the  front  with  the  tip 
elevated  slightly.  If  the  cast  has  been  started  from  the 
right  side,  many  anglers  will  finish  the  cast  with  the  reel 
turned  to  the  right  of  the  rod — riding  on  the  handle. 
If  from  the  left  (the  cast  being  made  with  the  right 
hand),  the  reel  will  ride  on  its  tail  plate — the  handle 
being  up.  In  the  former  case  some  thumb  the  end  drum, 
some  the  line  itself.  The  character  of  the  thumbing 
will  be  determined  largely  by  the  “form”  in  which  the 
angler  decides  to  finish  his  cast — reel  handle  up,  down  or 
reel  axis  horizontal. 

THE  UNDERHAND  CAST.  This  is  but  a  slight 
modification  of  the  lateral  cast,  wherein  the  tip  is  permit¬ 
ted  to  pass  below  the  horizontal,  even  to  a  point  near  the 
ground.  The  cast  is  then  made  in  a  manner  similar  to 
that  of  the  side  cast,  but  the  swing  of  the  arm  is  more 
complete  and  the  tip  passes  from  a  low  point  to  a  high 
position  when  it  stops  in  front  of  the  angler.  This,  nat¬ 
urally,  shoots  the  bait  high.  It  is  a  good  cast  to  know, 


40 


BAIT  CASTING 


since  it  is  often  possible  to  flip  a  lure  out  under  limbs  and 
branches  that  even  the  lateral  cast  could  not  negotiate. 
This  cast  is  easily  made  from  either  side  with  but  a  mini¬ 
mum  of  practice,  and  many  anglers  who  have  started 
with  it,  because  it  seemed  “natural,”  have  never  passed 
the  underhand  and  “sideswipe”  stage  in  casting.  Master 
the  overhead  first  and  pick  up  the  others  later. 

After  all,  do  not  let  this  discussion  or  that  of  any  other 
writer  influence  you  in  the  belief  that  there  is  a  sacred 
“form”  to  which  an  angler  must  attain  before  he  can  be 
classed  as  a  real  bait-caster.  In  the  light  of  some  of  the 
articles  we  have  read  we  feel  sure  that  we  personally 
do  not  know  one  end  of  a  short  rod  from  the  other — 
this  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  we  grew  up  with  a  bait¬ 
casting  rod.  Form  is  a  fine  thing,  and  artistic  casting 
demands  it — but  form  is  more  to  be  desired  on  the 
tournament  platform  than  on  waters  inhabited  by  real 
fish.  Naturally  a  tournament  caster  can  see  little  virtue 
in  any  cast  other  than  the  specially  timed  overhead.  Such 
a  cast  wins  the  points.  But  the  practical  bait-caster  will 
need  all  the  space  from  the  ground  on  the  one  side  to 
the  water  level  on  the  other,  if  he  is  to  master  all  the 
situations  in  a  day’s  mixed  casting. 

Nor  will  the  angler  be  content  with  the  casts  described 
if  he  progresses  far  as  a  short  rod  artist.  There  are  many 
little  flips  of  the  lure,  scarcely  to  be  dignified  as  casts, 
that  will  win  under  difficult  situations.  When  once  the 
general  idea  of  the  casting  game  has  been  mastered  and 
some  expertness  has  developed,  both  rod  and  reel  become 
a  part  of  the  man,  and  casts  are  made  with  as  little  atten¬ 
tion  to  method  and  form  as  would  obtain  were  the  angler 
to  cast  the  lure  with  his  unaided  hand. 

Retrieving  the  Lure 

No  matter  how  important  the  proper  placement  of 
the  lure  may  be  as  to  position,  the  handling  of  the  bait- 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


41 


% 


caster’s  offering  as  and  after  it  strikes  the  water  is  the 
real  fish-getting  part  of  short  rod  angling.  There  are 
several  methods  of  making  a  lure  go  through  its  stints, 
all  more  or  less  dependent  upon  fish  moods  and  the  type 
of  offering  used.  We  will  mention  several  that  should 
be  carefully  worked  out  in  the  angler’s  own  way — later 
he  will  develop  little  tricks  and  fish-netting  kinks  that 
will  win  for  him,  though  possibly  for  no  one  else. 

The  most  common  method  of  handling  a  lure  is  to 
stop  it  with  a  slight  pressure  of  the  thumb  just  over  the 
desired  water,  permitting  it  to  fall  lightly  upon  the  sur¬ 
face.  If  it  be  a  surface  lure,  it  should  be  started  back 
toward  the  angler  by  swinging  the  tip  to  the  left  just  as 
soon  as  the  offering  strikes  the  water;  a  change  of  rod 
from  right  to  left  hand  being  made  and  the  swing  com¬ 
pleted  with  the  left  hand  as  the  right  seeks  the  reel  handle 
and  starts  the  retrieve.  This  is  a  continuous  process.  The 
lure  should  not  lose  its  incoming  motion  from  the  instant 
its  strikes  the  water  to  the  time  it  is  well  on  its  way 
toward  the  angler.  Wobblers  will  be  handled  in  the 
same  manner,  but  a  sinking  underwater  may  rest  while 
the  angler  makes  the  change  of  hands,  since  it  will  be  in 
motion  downward  during  this  period  and  will  thus  be  an 
active  lure  even  though  the  retrieve  is  started  a  bit  late. 

There  is  a  much  better  method,  however — more  diffi¬ 
cult  but  far  more  taking,  and  it  will  pay  any  angler  well 
to  spend  hours  in  mastering  the  exact  timing  that  will 
make  such  a  retrieve  possible.  As  the  lure  is  stopped, 
hovering  over  the  proper  spot,  the  tip  is  started  toward  the 
left  (or  right,  as  seems  the  more  handy  to  the  individ¬ 
ual)  while  the  bait  is  still  in  the  air .  Proper  timing  of 
this  tip  movement  will  make  the  lure  dive  into  the  water 
instead  of  drop  into  it,  and  there  is  a  continuous  incom¬ 
ing  movement  from  the  moment  the  bait  stops  in  the  air 
until  well  in  toward  the  angler.  This  start  is  a  winner. 


Spooling  line  from  front  hand-grasp.  A  self-thumbing  reel  in  action 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


43 


A  third  method  may  be  employed  where  the  proper 
bank  or  floating  bog  or  other  cover  is  present.  Drop  the 
lure  on  the  cover  and  hop  it  off  after  the  rod  has  changed 
hands;  then  keep  it  coming.  This,  like  the  dive,  is  a 
very  taking  start. 

When  all  else  fails,  permit  the  lure  to  drop  and  rest 
upon  the  surface;  make  it  jump  and  wiggle  a  bit  by 
occasionally  lifting  the  tip  sharply,  and  then  start  the 
retrieve.  We  have  seen  such  a  start  often  win  a  strike 
when  the  active  lure  was  drawing  a  total  blank. 

We  have  spoken  of  the  start  of  the  retrieve  at  length 
because  most  strikes  will  occur  at  this  point.  A  lure 
that  has  been  coming  in  for  some  little  distance  is  not  a 
taking  offering  as  a  rule  (though  there  are  exceptions  to 
all  rules).  However,  many  fishermen  make  the  common 
mistake  of  keeping  the  bait  coming  in  at  a  uniform  rate 
of  speed — slow  reeling,  medium  and  fast,  as  fancy  may 
dictate.  This  is  not  as  it  should  be.  An  incoming  bait 
should  have  an  erratic  action,  and  if  the  lure  does  not 
create  such  action  itself,  the  rod  tip  and  a  change  of  reel¬ 
ing  speed  must  produce  a  jump,  a  wobble  and  a  glide. 

There  are  many  ways  of  getting  this  action.  Reel  a 
little  ways  and  rest  a  second,  then  reel  a  bit  more  and 
repeat.  Reel  continuously,  but  pump  the  tip  of  the  rod 
up  and  down,  now  slowly  and  with  quite  a  swing,  now 
sharply  and  for  only  a  few  inches.  Mix  ’em  up!  And 
add  as  many  fancy  steps  to  the  lure  as  tip  and  reeling 
manipulation  can  produce.  In  clear  water  and  with  a 
line  short  enough  to  see  the  lure,  one  can  work  out  quite 
a  variety  of  antics  for  the  offering  that  will  possess  much 
of  the  personal  element.  This  is  what  makes  one  lure 
deadly  in  the  hands  of  certain  anglers  and  fishless  when 
cast  by  others.  Most  lures  are  good,  but  each  must  be 
handled  in  the  proper  manner  before  it  can  deliver  to  the 
fullness  of  its  possibilities. 


4+ 


BAIT  CASTING 


The  retrieve  is  the  fish-getting  part  of  bait-casting,  and 
it  is  this  phase  of  the  game  that  often  spells  defeat  for 
the  form  extremists.  Laying  a  fly  is  nine-tenths  of  suc¬ 
cessful  fly-casting;  spotting  a  pot  hole  in  the  pads  is  but 
a  mere  beginning  in  the  successful  use  of  the  short  rod. 
Bait-casting  is  the  art  of  playing  from  the  reel ,  and  the 
knowing  angler  waves  aside  those  who  would  stress  un¬ 
duly  form  and  tackle  and  method — he  is  concerned  with 
the  retrieve,  with  the  lure  and  its  behavior,  far  more  than 
with  some  fancied  standard. 

Striking j  Playing  and  Netting 

Setting  the  hook,  or  striking  as  it  is  sometimes  called, 
is  a  very  important  matter  in  bait-casting  for  any  type 
of  fish.  It  is  true  that  some  fish  hit  the  lure  so  viciously 
that  they  hook  themselves  after  a  fashion,  but  the  angler 
will  do  well  to  make  a  practice  of  striking  every  fish. 
Ordinarily  the  point  of  the  hook  does  not  sink  home  to 
any  depth  when  a  fish  closes  upon  a  lure,  and  it  is  there¬ 
fore  necessary  to  drive  it  through  the  hard  portions  to 
insure  its  staying  until  the  end  of  the  battle.  Should 
the  point  be  seated  in  some  tender  and  thin  portion  of  the 
mouth,  a  strike  may  tear  the  hook  from  its  hold,  but  this 
is  better  than  permitting  the  fish  to  make  two  or  three 
runs  and  then  free  itself.  In  the  latter  case  the  fish  is 
frightened  and  will  not  strike  again;  in  the  former  case 
little  damage  is  done — the  fish  thinking  (if  think  he  can) 
that  the  “food”  gave  him  a  bit  of  a  nip,  and  the  chances 
are  that  he  will  hit  the  lure  more  savagely  at  the  next 
opportunity. 

Setting  the  hook  in  bait-casting  is  a  full  forearm  move¬ 
ment  as  against  the  wrist  set  in  fly  fishing.  The  fish 
being  larger  as  a  rule  and  the  mouth  tougher,  makes  it 
essential  that  a  rather  heavy  strike  be  employed.  The 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


45 


tiny  and  sharp  hook  of  the  flyman  will  sink  to  its  bend 
easily  with  a  slight  twist  of  the  wrist,  but  the  larger  hook 
used  by  the  bait-caster  will  need  considerable  force  to 
put  it  where  it  belongs.  We  would  not  have  the  angler 
think  that  he  must  yank  the  rod  or  swing  it  through  a 
long  arc  to  accomplish  his  purpose;  merely  add  a  little 
forearm  force  to  the  wrist  action  as  the  rod  is  snapped 
upward  or  to  the  right  or  left,  as  the  case  may  indicate. 

We  have  spoken  of  this  strike  as  a  snapping  of  the  rod 
upward  or  to  the  side.  In  some  ways  this  is  a  misstate¬ 
ment  of  the  motion,  since  the  action  is  really  started  slowly 
and  finished  with  a  sharp  ending.  If  the  start  be  made 
as  in  jerking  on  a  line,  calamity  will  follow,  for  the  line 
may  be  broken  where  it  is  knotted  to  the  lure  or  the  tip 
will  give  up.  This  snappy  start  is  what  wrecks  so  many 
rods  and  so  many  lines  in  the  hands  of  the  inexperienced 
caster.  But  start  the  strike  with  ease,  finish  with  a  quick 
stroke  after  a  slight  bend  is  put  in  the  tip,  and  both  rod 
and  line  will  stand  a  much  heavier  setting  of  the  hook 
than  is  generally  thought  possible. 

Great  care  must  be  used  in  learning  the  limitations  of 
the  particular  rod.  It  is  far  better  to  understrike  the  fish 
than  to  put  a  permanent  set  in  a  valuable  rod.  In  this 
connection  it  is  well  to  note  that  a  steel  rod  will  not 
stand  up  under  improper  setting  technique  any  more  than 
will  a  bamboo,  hickory  or  bethabara.  We  sometimes  wish 
that  the  manufacturers  of  steel  rods  would  not  guarantee 
them  against  breakage,  for  it  might  be  that  anglers  gen¬ 
erally  would  then  use  just  a  wee  bit  of  common  sense 
in  the  matter  of  undue  strain  and  the  jerking  treatment 
that  usually  is  given  this  most  excellent  tool.  One  does 
not  need  to  yank  a  fish  out  of  the  water  in  order  to  give 
the  hook  a  good  stiff  set,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  sufficient 
force  must  be  applied  to  insure  a  firm  placement  of  the 
point. 


-  .  &S - &M  - 


A  level-winder  in  action.  Note  position  of  left  thumb,  ready  to  check  a  run  of  the 

fighting  fish 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


47 


When  the  point  sinks  home,  most  fish  will  make  a 
strong  run,  and  it  is  at  this  state  of  the  game  that  the 
“playing  of  the  fish”  begins.  Give  him  his  head  on  this 
first  run  but  keep  the  line  taut  by  pressing  on  the  spooled 
line  or  a  back-lash  will  develop.  It  is  not  wise  to  shut 
down  too  hard  on  the  first  run  of  a  hooked  fish  unless  he 
is  making  for  cover  in  the  form  of  dense  vegetation  or 
snags.  Let  him  go,  increasing  the  pressure  on  the  line 
as  he  nears  the  end  of  the  run.  From  this  time  on  until 
the  fish  is  netted,  the  rod  should  be  kept  bent  in  a  curve 
with  the  tip  elevated,  so  that  the  spring  of  the  rod  will 
take  up  any  slack  that  may  arise  because  of  some  quick 
turn  of  the  fish  toward  the  angler. 

Every  time  that  the  fish  starts  a  run,  let  him  go,  and 
every  time  add  a  little  more  thumb  pressure  to  the  line 
to  make  it  more  difficult  for  him  to  get  very  far  with  his 
attempt  at  freedom.  When  he  stops,  raise  the  rod  slowly 
a  couple  of  feet  and  reel  in  the  line  thus  gained — not 
by  dragging  the  fish  as  the  reel  revolves  but  by  lowering 
the  rod  tip  as  the  line  spools.  If  he  has  not  started  an¬ 
other  run  when  this  line  is  in,  raise  the  tip  again  and 
repeat  the  reeling  process.  Work  the  fish  toward  the 
boat  or  bank  by  raising  the  tip;  gain  line  in  spooling  by 
lowering  it  again,  but  always  keep  the  tension — the  ten¬ 
sion  on  the  line  is  what  tires  the  fish  and  makes  netting 
possible.  _ 

Above  all,  do  not  be  in  a  hurry  to  bring  the  fish  in  to 
the  net.  The  chances  are  in  the  angler’s  favor  when 
there  are  thirty  or  forty  feet  of  line  between  the  tip  and 
the  fish.  As  this  decreases  the  chances  of  the  fish  increase. 
A  scrappy  bass  on  an  eight  to  ten-foot  line  has  the  average 
angler  at  his  mercy.  Keep  him  away  from  the  boat  or 
bank  until  he  is  fully  tired  out,  but  keep  him  working 
all  the  time.  When  he  nears  the  region  where  a  net  may 
be  used,  lower  the  rod  tip  and  keep  the  fish  swinging 


+S 


BAIT  CASTING 


around  in  a  large  figure  eight  until  he  is  completely  “all 
in”;  or  work  him  back  and  forth  along  the  side  of  the 
boat  until  the  net  can  be  brought  into  play.  When  a 
fish  is  about  spent,  he  will  keep  quiet,  as  a  rule,  so  long 
as  he  is  worked  through  the  water. 

Now,  lower  the  net  well  down  into  the  water;  work 
the  fish  past  it  once ,  being  ready  to  give  him  line  if  he 
starts  a  run  on  seeing  the  net  in  the  water.  Swing  him 
around  again  if  he  does  not  run,  and  lead  him  up  briskly 
over  the  mouth  of  the  net.  Raise  the  net  with  a  firm 
and  sure  upward  swing  so  as  to  permit  the  fish  to  shoot 
into  it  head  first.  Do  not  scoop  with  the  net — just  swing 
it  up  toward  the  surface,  and  as  the  fish’s  head 
comes  well  over  the  opening,  drop  the  tip  of  the  rod. 
The  fish  will  settle,  head  first,  into  the  net  as  it  comes 
up — and  continue  the  swing  of  the  net  up  over  the  side 
of  the  boat.  From  the  time  the  net  starts  up  until  it 
clears  the  side  of  the  boat,  the  action  should  be  a  contin¬ 
uous  swing,  timed  just  right  to  meet  the  fish,  quick  enough 
to  be  clean  and  snappy  act,  but  under  no  circumstances 
should  it  be  a  scoop  or  a  jab. 

The  smaller  fish  may,  of  course,  be  netted  side  first  or 
even  tail  first  with  the  head  held  well  up  on  a  taut  line; 
but  the  larger  fish  will,  with  one  flip  of  the  tail,  shoot 
out  of  the  net  opening  as  soon  as  touched.  Use  a  deep 
net,  especially  if  members  of  the  pike  tribe  will  be  taken. 
Thirty  to  thirty-six  inches  will  not  be  too  much  in  length, 
and  the  opening  may  well  be  from  fifteen  to  eighteen 
inches  across.  Netting  a  fish  is  an  art  that  few  anglers 
have  mastered. 


Handling  Leaping  Fish 

This  subject  is  worth  a  few  words  all  by  itself  and 
apart  from  the  main  discussion  of  playing  the  fish.  We 
might  even  have  restricted  it  still  more,  for  of  all  the 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


49 


fish  that  fall  to  the  short  rod,  the  black  bass  is  the  cham¬ 
pion  leaper  beyond  question,  and  we  might  have  styled 
this  section — handling  leaping  bass.  Most  of  us  are 
willing  to  admit  that  the  bass  is  “inch  for  inch  and  pound 
for  pound”  the  most  famous  fresh-water  fighter  of  them 
all ;  but  we  will,  regardless  of  inches  or  pounds,  assert 
without  reservation  of  any  kind  that  he  is  the  fastest, 
most  erratic  and  strongest  leaper  of  the  whole  fresh¬ 
water  tribe.  And  we  do  not  believe  that  we  are  alone  in 
this  opinion. 

It  is  difficult  to  suggest  methods  of  handling  a  leaping 
fish,  for  every  jump  has  its  own  peculiarities  and  require¬ 
ments.  In  general  it  may  be  said  that  a  fish  may  be 
forced  to  stay  in  the  water  to  some  extent  by  keeping  the 
tip  of  the  rod  close  to  the  surface.  A  high  tip  will  call 
a  bass  into  the  air  in  no  time,  hence  we  would  recom¬ 
mend  that  the  tip  be  kept  high.  No,  this  is  not  a  mis¬ 
print!  We  meant  just  that  and  nothing  else.  Keep  the 
tip  high  and  let  ’em  jump.  Who  wants  to  keep  a  fish 
from  taking  the  air?  That  is  the  grandest  sight  and  the 
most  thrilling  moment  in  all  fishing — the  air  route!  Let 
them  jump  by  all  means. 

In  handling  a  jumping  fish  there  is  but  one  necessary 
thing  to  accomplish — we  should  have  said,  to  keep  accom¬ 
plishing — and  that  is  to  keep  the  line  taut.  We  cannot 
tell  how  to  do  it,  but  it  must  be  done  or  the  fish  will 
throw  the  lure  or  baited  hook.  The  best  recommendation 
that  we  can  give  is  to  watch  for  the  jump,  and  when  you 
see  that  he  is  coming  out  as  told  by  the  rising  line,  put  a 
little  more  bend  in  the  tip  and  hold.  As  he  takes  the  air, 
this  bend  will  furnish  enough  tension  and  enough  play 
to  keep  everything  tight.  Do  not,  as  you  value  your  fish¬ 
ing  as  an  art  and  a  sport,  do  not  “jerk  him  off  his  feet” 
while  in  midair!  We  have  seen  this  recommended  times 
without  number,  and  it  always  goes  against  the  grain. 


A  self-thumbing  and  level-winding  reel  in  action.  Nothing  to  do  but  cast  out  and  “turn 

the  crank” 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


51 


It  is  neither  fair  to  the  fish  nor  to  the  art  of  bait-casting, 
for  a:  fish’s  one  best  bet  is  the  air  route,  and  bait-casting 
to  be  artistic  is  a  playing  from  the  reel  game — a  case  of 
give  and  take  under  taut  line  conditions,  with  the  jerks 
made  possible  by  strong  tackle  barred. 

Night  Casting 

Casting  the  night  line  is,  of  course,  very  similar  to  day¬ 
light  casting,  but  there  is  some  difference  in  the  method 
employed  because  of  the  darkness.  Everything  must  be 
done  by  the  sense  of  touch  alone,  since  there  will  be  little 
or  no  light  when  the  best  casting  obtains,  and  it  is  the 
part  of  wisdom  to  make  certain  changes  in  tackle  and  a 
definite  selection  of  known  water. 

Night  casting  can  best  be  done  from  a  boat,  for  it  will 
then  be  possible  to  get  out  into  the  clear,  away  from  snags 
and  heavy  vegetation.  The  angler  should  choose  his  loca¬ 
tion  during  the  daylight  hours  and  see  that  his  boat  is 
placed  in  an  open  spot  well  away  from  trouble.  This 
type  of  casting  is  most  frequently  employed  during  mid¬ 
summer,  and  since  the  fish  are  in  deep  water  during  the 
heat  of  the  day,  it  is  well  to  locate  in  near  the  rushes  and 
pads,  where  these  break  off  quickly  into  the  depths.  Open 
coves  and  small  bays  with  deep  water  on  the  lake  side 
will  also  be  very  fruitful  spots,  and  a  prime  location  will 
be  just  off  the  mouth  of  some  lake  tributary. 

Perhaps  the  most  important  part  of  night  equipment 
is  the  reel.  This  should  be  an  anti-back-lash  and  level¬ 
winding  winch.  A  skilled  bait-caster  will  often  use  a 
plain  level-winder  or  a  plain  self-thumber,  sometimes  a 
standard  caster,  but  the  freedom  from  trouble  that  the 
combined  aids  give  is  very  much  worth  while.  Personally 
we  would  not  think  of  going  out  “for  the  night”  without 
our  “do  it  all”  quads,  and  we  have  shot  about  as  many 
lures  with  the  short  rod  as  any.  Just  get  a  first-class 


52 


BAIT  CASTING 


back-lash  in  the  dark  and  you  will  agree  that  our  advice 
is  right. 

One  should  use  slightly  heavier  lures  and  higher  test 
lines  at  night;  the  former  being  easier  to  cast,  and  the 
latter  good  insurance  against  the  night  troubles  that  just 
will  come.  Regulation  bass  plugs  and  a  sixteen-pound 
soft-braided  silk  will  be  about  right,  and  of  course  the 
standard  weight  rods  will  be  needed.  We  recommend 
the  high-grade  steel  as  being  the  night  rod  par  excellence 
— the  work  is  going  to  be  a  bit  rough  and  it  will  test 
the  staying  power  of  any  rod. 

While  one  can  use  a  variety  of  lures  for  night  work, 
the  surface  plug  is  here  at  its  best.  The  fish  will  be 
feeding  near  the  surface  and  there  will  be  little  need  to 
resort  to  a  wobbler  or  the  frog.  We  prefer  the  luminous 
finish,  not  that  it  will  be  a  bit  more  attractive  to  the  fish 
than  the  ordinary  color  combinations  but  because  the 
angler  can  follow  the  plug  as  it  works  its  way  in  during 
the  retrieve,  and  often  it  is  a  glowing  mark  to  point  out 
the  location  of  the  fish  if  the  battle  is  on  the  surface. 

Lacking  the  luminous  finish,  use  any  surface  lure  with 
which  fish  have  been  taken.  All  white  if  you  like,  white 
with  red  head  or  any  other  pattern — it  matters  little.  A 
BLACK  lure  is  just  as  attractive  at  night  as  a  white  offer¬ 
ing.  You  don’t  believe  it?  Well,  neither  did  we — but 
we  know  that  a  black  surface  plug,  a  black  bass  bug  and 
a  Black  Prince  fly  fished  wet  will  take  bass  at  night  with 
regularity.  Try  it. 

The  lure  should  also  be  weedless.  We  know  that  we 
suggested  weedless  water,  but  we  have  caught  weeds 
aplenty  after  dark  in  water  that  we  were  absolutely  sure 
was  just  plain  water  all  the  way  across  and  all  the  way 
down  when  viewed  by  daylight.  Double  hooked  lures 
will  avoid  most  of  the  trouble  and  may  be  weedless 
enough  for  most  work. 


THE  ART  OF  BAIT  CASTING 


53 


Do  not  attempt  to  cast  great  distances — we  have  picked 
up  bass  within  ten  feet  of  the  boat  at  night.  But  keep 
your  feet  still  and  move  things  in  the  boat  with  great 
care.  Strange  how  sounds  and  jars  caused  by  shifting 
the  feet  will  carry  through  the  water  at  night!  Sing  if 
you  like,  but  keep  your  feet  still. 

The  best  lure  is  one  that  kicks  up  quite  a  fuss  by  day. 
Night  reeling  should  be  much  slower  than  day  reeling 
so  the  big  rumpus  will  be  softened  down  and  a  slow  act¬ 
ing  daylight  lure  will  be  very  quiet  at  night. 

A  flashlight  will  be  a  great  aid  in  netting  the  fish — 
and  netting  the  fish  is  a  man’s  job  at  night,  even  with  a 
light.  A  companion  will  be  more  than  welcome  for  many 
reasons  BUT — be  sure  to  use  the  overhead  cast  and  cast 
ONLY  at  right  angles  to  the  long  diameter  of  the  boat. 
A  hooked  companion — let’s  think  of  something  else! 

Don’t  forget  the  “makin’s.”  Never  heard  of  a  real 
night  angler  who  didn’t  smoke  a  cob  pipe;  and  last  but 
not  least,  it  is  a  mighty  good  plan  to  take  two  or  three 
“loaded”  reels  along — we  HAVE  seen  an  anti-back-lash 
level- winding  reel  BACK- LASH  ! 

Beating  a  Back-lash 

It  would  be  absolutely  impossible  to  give  directions 
for  untangling  a  back-lash,  yet  there  are  a  few  general 
points  that  may  help  and,  like  the  directions  on  a  patent 
medicine  of  considerable  advertising  fame,  the  hints 
should  “be  taken  early  in  the  attack  and  before  any  other 
remedies  have  been  tried.”  Once  give  a  few  hard  pulls 
on  a  line  that  is  in  the  bird’s-nest  stage  and  you’ll  need 
a  line  surgeon  and  not  a  line  doctor. 

Remember  what  causes  the  back-lash.  The  spool  has 
been  revolving  with  a  forward  rotation  much  faster  than 
the  line  could  get  out  from  under  the  pillars.  Hence  the 
line  is,  in  reality,  but  loosely  spooled  and  will  come  off 


5+ 


BAIT  CASTING 


readily  if  the  angler  sees  to  it  that  there  is  no  tight 
pulling . 

Start  pulling  with  ease  on  the  line  that  goes  to  the 
the  thumb  presses  firmly  on  the  spool  until  the  lure  is 
yield  to  a  slight  pull,  take  a  smooth  stick,  wire,  nail,  or 
even  the  fingers,  and  loosen  the  coils  a  bit  here  and  there 
around  the  spool.  Try  a  slight  pull  again.  If  it  works, 
keep  going;  if  it  still  sticks,  loosen  the  coils  some  more. 
Keep  this  up  and  REMEMBER  THIS:  You  must  keep 
your  temper,  must  keep  cool  and  must  take  your  time I 
The  worst  case  of  back-lashing  will  yield  to  careful 
manipulation.  We  have  often  worked  for  a  long  time 
on  a  bird’s-nest  with  no  apparent  results,  when  all  of  a 
sudden  something  would  give  and  the  line  would  come 
freely  from  the  spool. 

Reels  that  take  down  easily  and  permit  one  to  remove 
the  spool  often  assist  matters  to  a  considerable  extent. 
They  also  often  make  matters  worse,  and  the  result  is  a 
bad  snarl  that  it  will  take  hours  to  untangle.  But,  for  a 
simple  case,  they  will  speed  up  results  as  a  usual  thing. 

Keep  everlastingly  at  it  with  delicate  pulls  and  loosen¬ 
ing  movements  and  the  trouble  will  yield.  If  it  doesn’t 
— call  a  line  surgeon  and  put  on  a  new  line. 


Chapter  V 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  LURE 
Plugs 

WE  SHALL  discuss  the  bait-casting  plug  first,  be¬ 
cause  it  is  the  lure  that  most  closely  parallels  the 
development  of  the  short  rod  in  its  own  evolution  from 
a  heavy  cedar  block  to  the  modern  one-hooked  lighter 
lure. 

Regardless  of  the  many  shapes  and  forms,  colors  and 
patterns,  fronts,  bottoms,  tops,  backs  and  sides,  there  are 
only  three  types  of  plug  baits  on  the  market:  Surface 
lures ,  wobbling  underwaters ,  and  deep  running  plugs — 
the  old-fashioned  underwater.  Most  surface  lures  float. 
Some  will  sink,  but  will  rise  to  the  surface  when  being 
reeled  in  toward  the  angler.  Wobbling  underwaters 
float  when  at  rest,  but  dive  and  wriggle  to  a  greater  or 
less  depth,  depending  upon  the  reeling  speed.  Deep  run¬ 
ning  underwaters  are  sinking  baits  and  come  nearer  the 
surface  as  the  speed  of  reeling  increases.  We  shall  dis¬ 
cuss  each  one  separately. 

Surface  lures  are  variously  built  to  come  straight  in, 
to  wriggle  in,  and  to  glide  back  and  forth  as  they  approach 
the  angler.  They  may  or  may  not  have  collars  of  wood 
or  metal  to  throw  a  spray  (large  or  small)  and  may  or 
may  not  have  spinners  in  front  and  behind  the  lure.  The 
idea  is  this:  Sometimes  it  is  desired  to  have  a  quietly 
moving  surface  bait — no  spinners  or  collars ;  again,  a  slight 
ripple  may  be  indicated — spinners  added;  or,  quite  a 
little  spray  may  appeal  to  the  fish — a  collar  of  wood  or 
metal ;  and  last,  the  angler  may  wish  a  regular  sputtering 


56 


BAIT  CASTING 


bait — big  collar,  wings  or  any  contraption  to  throw  a 
spray  and  to  keep  the  lure  churning  up  the  surface. 

In  a  season’s  fishing  the  careful  and  successful  angler 
will  find  a  time  when  all  of  the  above  types  of  surface 
lures  will  be  indicated.  Should  the  amateur  be  in  doubt 
as  to  the  proper  surface  offering,  he  will  do  wdl  to  confine 
his  casting  to  the  lures  with  spinners  or  with  a  medium 
wood  or  metal  collar.  Such  lures  are  uniformly  successful 
when  a  surface  lure  is  indicated. 

The  hooks  on  a  surface  lure  should  be  hung  low,  and 
most  plugs  of  this  type  have  the  hooks  hung  from  the 
underside.  Surface  lures  supplied  with  treble  hooks  are 
going  out  of  use  because  double  hooked  lures  hook  just 
as  well,  hold  better,  are  more  weedless,  are  easier  to  carry 
in  the  kit,  and  give  the  fish  a  better  opportunity  to  fight 
without  getting  all  messed  up  in  a  bunch  of  trebles.  A 
small  fish  that  has  been  taken  on  a  treble  gang  plug  is 
usually  not  in  shape  to  be  returned  to  the  water  with 
any  sure  chance  of  recovery. 

Colors  of  surface  lures  are  unimportant.  The  fish  is 
below  the  plug  and  it  appears  as  a  dark  patch  against  the 
brighter  sky.  No  light  filters  through  it,  as  in  the  case 
of  an  artificial  fly,  so  the  angler  may  choose  his  surface 
plug  colors  to  suit  his  own  idea  of  the  beautiful.  The 
surface  lure  is  attractive  because  of  its  action. 

Plugs  of  this  type  are  to  be  cast  when  the  fish  are  in 
the  shallow  areas  near  shore.  The  angler  should  study 
the  retrieve  of  his  lure  until  he  can  make  it  behave  in  a 
variety  of  ways.  Fast  reeling,  slow  reeling  and  again  a 
jerky  retrieve,  all  are  good  at  times. 

Wobbling  underwaters  are  built  to  ride  on  the  surface 
when  at  rest,  but  dive  and  wriggle  or  glide  from  side  to 
side  on  being  retrieved.  These  lures  were  developed  to 
meet  the  needs  of  the  man  who  does  not  know  how  to 
make  a  regular  underwater  do  “tricks”  when  it  is  coming 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  LURE 


57 


in — a  knack  that  the  expert  bait-caster  acquires  in  the 
course  of  much  experience.  They  are  usually  without 
spinners  of  any  kind  and  have  the  head,  or  front  portion, 
so  designed  as  to  create  the  wobbling  motion,  or  have  a 
metal  collar  or  fin  for  the  same  purpose. 

These  lures  also  ride  at  various  depths  and  are  gov¬ 
erned  as  to  depth  by  the  shape  of  the  metal  collar  or  by 
the  placement  of  the  line  eye,  or  both.  Many  of  them 
are  so  arranged  that  they  can  be  used  as  surface  lures 
by  adjusting  the  metal  attachment,  some  ride  just  below 
the  surface,  others  dive  to  quite  a  depth.  All  have  an 
individual  type  of  wiggle  or  wobble,  yet  all  are  imitations 
of  the  swimming  action  of  a  crippled  or  wounded  minnow 
* — the  one  best  bet  in  a  bait-casting  plug. 

We  would  not  advise  a  great  assortment  of  action 
types  in  this  plug.  It  is  better  that  the  angler  learn  to 
handle  a  few  of  them  in  a  taking  manner.  When  once 
the  plug  has  been  thoroughly  mastered,  the  angler  will 
swear  by  his  offering,  and  what  is  more,  will  take  fish 
with  it  when  another  angler,  using  the  same  lure,  will 
draw  few  if  any  strikes.  Practically  all  wobbling  under¬ 
waters  will  take  fish  aplenty  in  the  hands  of  a  man  who 
really  knows  how  to  put  them  through  their  stints. 

Hooks  hang  from  the  underside  in  these  plugs  as  well 
as  in  the  surface  lures,  for  a  side  hook  tends  to  spoil  the 
wobbling  action.  We  recommend  the  double  hook  here 
for  the  same  reasons  advanced  previously. 

Colors  of  wobbling  underwaters  are  of  much  more 
importance  than  special  colors  in  the  surface  offering, 
and  we  will  treat  of  these  in  connection  with  the  under¬ 
water  lures.  However,  the  action  is  the  great  thing.  If 
it  resembles  some  crippled  food  of  the  fish  or  works  in 
such  a  manner  as  to  call  forth  a  strike  because  of  some¬ 
thing  we  choose  to  call  anger,  the  success  of  the  plug  is 
assured. 


Indiana  pattern  reels.  Upper — Turned  one-quarter  to  left  for 
spooling.  Middle — Line  properly  wound  for  spooling.  Lower 
— Using  right  hand  in  winding 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  LURE 


59 


Plugs  of  this  type  are  to  be  cast  in  the  deeper  waters 
around  the  pads  and  fringing  the  rushes  and  weed  growth, 
or  over  the  deep-water  weed  patches.  Learn  to  vary  the 
action  of  the  plug  by  a  change  of  reeling  pace  and  by 
tip  manipulation.  It  is  surprising  what  a  variety  of  steps 
one  can  work  into  the  action  of  these  plugs  when  reeling 
and  tip  action  are  combined. 

Underwater  or  deep  running  plugs  are  the  original 
bait-casting  plugs.  They  are  intended  for  deep-water 
work  when  fish  are  at  depths  that  make  the  underwater 
wobblers  unattractive.  These  plugs,  for  the  most  part, 
run  in  a  straight  line,  and  it  is  necessary  for  the  angler 
to  tip  handle  them  in  order  to  get  the  crippled  action 
so  attractive  to  game-fish. 

They  are,  almost  without  exception,  equipped  with  a 
front  or  a  front  and  back  spinner;  the  hooks  hang  from 
the  sides  of  the  lure,  and  they  rely  upon  their  spinner 
flash  and  the  color  pattern  for  their  fish  taking  qualities 
largely. 

Color,  in  a  lure  of  this  kind,  is  very  important,  and 
the  design  is  that  of  a  minnow.  The  more  nearly  the 
offering  exhibits  the  minnow  appearance  the  greater  will 
be  its  taking  qualities.  If  the  angler  can  add  the  crippled 
action  as  well,  the  value  of  the  lure  will  be  increased. 

The  deep  running  plugs  are  of  use  in  the  summer  when 
the  fish  are  in  very  deep  water.  Cast  them  well  away 
from  the  boat,  let  them  settle  down  to  the  bottom,  and 
retrieve  just  off  the  bottom  slowly  and  erratically.  In 
the  hands  of  an  old  hand  at  the  game  these  lures  will  be 
very  effective;  reeled  in  without  any  tip  manipulation 
they  are  apt  to  be  a  disappointment.  They  are  great  weed 
catchers  since  it  is  difficult  to  equip  them  with  double  or 
single  hooks,  and  their  sinking  nature  gets  the  angler 
into  troubles  without  number.  Some  are  built  for  single 
hooks  and  do  very  creditable  work. 


60 


BAIT  CASTING 


Plug  color  patterns  are  of  three  main  kinds:  Those 
that  imitate  some  natural  food,  the  solid  colors,  and  the 
grotesque  color  schemes.  In  general  the  highly  colored 
creations  are  suited  to  early  season  and  late  season  an¬ 
gling;  the  solid  colors  and  natural  food  imitations  being 
the  better  in  the  summer,  though  they  are  very  attrac¬ 
tive  in  the  early  and  late  months,  as  well  as  the  rain¬ 
bow  and  spotted  shades. 

For  surface  lures  the  red  head  and  white  body  is 
standard.  We  believe  that  there  is  no  better  combina¬ 
tion  for  this  type  of  plug.  Wobbling  underwaters  may 
need  more  decoration.  Red  head  with  white,  silver  or 
gold  body  will  be  good.  Frog  and  scale  finishes  and 
spots  of  various  colors  at  times  are  attractive.  Solid  white, 
red,  yellow  and  even  black  will  be  taking  on  occasion. 
In  the  deep  runners  we  have  a  great  fondness  for  de¬ 
cided  minnow  colorations:  Perch,  redfin,  shiner  and  the 
like;  also  the  green  black  with  white  below  and  the  brown 
black  with  white.  All  red  and  all  black,  with  a  possi¬ 
bility  of  all  yellow,  are  often  excellent  in  midsummer; 
and  the  red  head  with  white,  silver  or  gold  body  may 
turn  the  trick  when  all  else  fails.  Different  waters  and 
different  fish  call  for  a  knowing  choice  on  the  part  of 
the  angler — no  one  plug  will  catch  fish  of  every  kind 
on  every  water,  advertisements  of  overzealous  makers 
to  the  contrary  notwithstanding! 

There  is  a  growing  tendency  to  cast  smaller  and 
smaller  plugs.  Only  a  few  years  ago  plugs  with  five 
gangs  of  hooks  were  frequently  seen  in  the  bait-caster’s 
kit.  Now  they  are  curiosities  in  the  tackle  shops.  The 
three  gang  plug  is  seldom  cast  save  in  the  old  style  un¬ 
derwater  where  two  side  gangs  and  one  tail  treble  are 
retained  in  order  to  give  the  lure  proper  balance.  But 
even  this  type  of  plug  can  be  built  with  a  single  double 
placed  underneath  the  lure,  and  it  is  only  a  question  of 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  LURE 


61 


time  until  all  bait-casting  plugs  will  carry  not  more  than 
two  doubles  or  two  singles.  Even  now  the  single  hook 
plug  is  on  the  market,  and  when  properly  designed,  such 
an  offering  is  far  better  than  the  old  multi-gang  plugs  in 
permanent  hooking  efficiency  and  in  sportsmanship.  The 
modern  angler  is  placing  his  faith  in  the  lighter  and 
smaller  plugs. 


Rinds  and  Chunks 

One  of  the  nicest  bait-casting  offerings  is  the  pork 
rind  and  the  pork  chunk.  The  rind  is  a  flexible  piece  of 
rind  so  cut  as  to  resemble  the  action  of  a  struggling  min¬ 
now;  the  chunk  is  cut  full  and  thick  so  that  it  will  ride 
on  the  surface.  The  minnow-like  rind  is  used  in  the 
same  water  as  the  wobbling  underwater  plug;  the  chunk, 
for  surface  work  in  the  thick  pads  and  rushes. 

Pork  rind  has  long  been  a  favorite  in  the  combination: 
Spoon — fly — rind.  A  red  or  yellow  fly  was  the  basis 
of  this  combination,  but  it  is  possible  and  profitable  to 
make  use  of  other  patterns.  This  lure  makes  a  standard 
offering  for  practically  all  game-fish  from  crappie  to  mus- 
kellonge. 

Various  rigs  have  been  devised  for  the  holding  of  the 
rind,  from  plain  hooks  to  weedless  hooks  with  some  sort 
of  a  spinner  attachment — all  more  or  less  modifications 
of  the  first  combination.  Some  carry  the  rind  flat,  others 
make  it  ride  on  edge,  all  are  very  much  worth  while. 
Pork  rind  being  very  tough,  such  a  lure  will  last  for  a 
day’s  ordinary  casting  and  it  is  not  necessary  to  keep 
changing  baits. 

The  chunk  is  used  in  connection  with  a  plain  weed¬ 
less  hook  as  a  rule,  though  a  small  spinner  may  be  added 
if  desired.  Being  a  surface  spattering  bait,  it  is  a  fine 
lure  for  casting  in  thick  pads,  where  it  rides  easily  and 
presents  a  very  taking  appearance. 


Thumbing  two  types  of  Indiana  pattern  reels.  (Upper  and 
middle.)  Using  reel  as  an  anti-back-lash.  (Lower) 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  LURE 


63 


It  is  customary  to  have  a  bit  of  red  in  connection  with 
the  rind  or  chunk,  and  if  a  red  fly  is  not  used,  a  bit  of 
red  yarn  can  be  tied  to  the  hook  or  about  the  front  of 
the  rind  or  chunk.  A  dash  of  red  is  always  attractive. 

The  rind  and  chunk  have  always  been  considered 
sportsmanlike  baits  because  the  lure  carries  but  one  hook, 
aside  from  the  small  hook  or  snap  to  which  the  rind  is 
attached.  Its  attractive  feature  lies  in  its  crippled  min¬ 
now  action. 


Spoons 

One  of  the  nicest  bait-casting  offerings  is  the  spoon 
hook.  This  may  be  either  the  spoon  and  single  hook  fly 
or  spoon  and  plain  hook  to  which  a  frog,  minnow  or  rind 
is  added.  The  old  style  treble  hook  spoon  is  still  a  great 
favorite,  but  knowing  anglers  are  discarding  it  for  the 
single  hook  fly,  because  the  latter  is  just  as  good  a  hooker, 
is  a  better  holder,  and  is  more  weedless  as  well  as  being 
considered  more  sportsmanlike. 

Especially  for  the  pike  tribe  the  wobbling  type  of  spoon 
is  a  prime  favorite,  and  this  is  also  a  great  lure  for  lake 
trout  and  salmon.  Such  a  spoon  is  usually  equipped  with 
a  plain  treble  or  a  plain  single  hook  instead  of  the  cus¬ 
tomary  feathered  or  bucktail  gang. 

Spoons  are  usually  nickel  or  silver  colored,  though 
brass,  copper  and  various  colored  spoons  are  at  times  in¬ 
dicated.  It  is  well  to  have  an  assortment  for  certain 
waters,  and  certain  fish  show  a  decided  preference  for 
some  special  metal  or  color.  When  a  bright  flash  is  de¬ 
sired,  the  silver  colored  spoon  is  indicated ;  less  flash — 
the  brass  and  copper  or  enameled  blades.  Some  anglers 
desire  a  large  single  spoon  when  after  large  fish,  while 
others  demand  a  smaller  blade  in  tandem.  Both  styles 
are  good. 


64 


BAIT  CASTING 


Long  slim  blades  spin  close  to  the  shank,  oval  blades 
spin  wider,  and  round  blades  spin  at  almost  right  angles 
to  the  shank  of  the  spoon.  When  it  is  desired  to  have 
the  fish  strike  the  spoon  itself,  a  slim  blade  is  indicated; 
when  the  spoon  is  followed  by  a  bait,  such  as  a  frog  or 
minnow,  it  is  wise  to  use  a  round  blade  so  that  the  fish 
will  lose  sight  of  the  spoon  as  it  approaches  and  be 
attracted  to  the  bait  where  the  hook  is  placed.  One 
should  use  a  close  spinning  blade  when  fish  are  striking 
short;  a  round  blade  when  there  is  a  tendency  to  over¬ 
strike.  This  applies,  of  course,  to  fish  that  strike  from  the 
side;  a  rear  striking  fish  will  take  either  blade  equally 
well. 

Good  spoons  for  the  bait-caster  will  run  in  size  from 
a  No.  3  to  a  No.  5  and  may  need  a  bit  of  weight,  such 
as  a  two-ringed  sinker,  fastened  some  six  or  eight  inches 
above  to  give  sufficient  pull  for  casting.  Very  light 
weight  rods  with  eight  to  ten  pound  test  lines  will  usually 
handle  most  of  the  spoons  without  extra  weight  being 
added.  The  finest  rod  for  this  work  is  a  five-foot  two 
bamboo  weighing  an  even  four  ounces. 


THE  BAIT-CASTING  LURE 


65 


Spoon  blades  may  be  either  plain  metal  or  fluted.  Both 
spin  equally  well,  and  it  is  up  to  the  angler  to  take  his 
choice.  Do  not  make  the  mistake  of  using  a  blade  that 
is  too  large,  No.  3  to  No.  5  will  be  large  enough  for 
most  fishing,  and  a  No.  3  tandem  slim  blade  makes  a  fine 
size  for  bass,  wall-eyes  and  pike,  where  the  latter  do 
not  run  to  any  great  size.  Flies  should  be  selected  with 
a  view  to  the  waters  to  be  fished,  for  bass  especially;  for 
wall-eyes,  a  fly  with  considerable  white,  as  a  Parmacheene 
Belle  or  white  bucktail,  will  be  found  very  taking;  for 
pike,  solid  colors  in  red,  white,  yellow,  or  natural  buck- 
tail  color  will  do  the  work  nicely.  On  bass,  do  not  fail 
to  try  out  solid  black,  such  as  the  Black  Prince — black 
is  being  recognized  more  and  more  as  a  great  bass  getter. 

We  do  not  favor  the  phantom  minnows  as  casting  baits, 
though  they  are  good  wall-eye  lures,  yet  the  metal  devons 
are  excellent,  especially  on  small-mouth  in  the  streams. 

Frogs  and  Minnows 

The  frog  is  the  universal  live  offering  as  cast  via  the 
bait-casting  rod.  There  are  many  good  frog-casting  rigs 


66 


BAIT  CASTING 


on  the  market — those  with  trailer  hooks  that  can  be  tied 
around  the  body  of  the  frog  being  right  for  most  work. 
Unless  one  is  casting  a  live  frog,  hooked  through  the  lips, 
in  a  manner  to  permit  it  to  do  its  own  swimming  and 
kicking  around,  there  is  no  valid  reason  for  using  the 
frog  alive.  A  dead  frog  will  hold  to  the  rig  better,  and 
with  a  bit  of  tip  work  will  make  a  better  presentation 
of  the  bait.  We  make  it  a  point  always  to  kill  a  frog 
before  using  it  as  a  casting  bait. 

The  minnow  is  seldom  lip  hooked  for  regular  bait¬ 
casting.  Run  the  hook  through  the  mouth,  out  the  gill 
cleft  and  push  the  point  through  the  body  just  in  front 
of  the  back  fin.  This  gives  a  solid  hooking  of  the  bait, 
and  with  it  one  can  cast  without  fear  of  losing  the  min¬ 
now.  For  most  bait-casting  the  use  of  a  small  spoon, 
No.  3  or  No.  3^4  round  blade,  is  a  fine  addition  to  either 
the  frog  or  the  minnow,  and  it  is  a  great  help  in  connec¬ 
tion  with  the  rind  as  well. 

A  four-inch  minnow  is  a  good  length  for  most  work 
on  bass,  wall-eyes  and  the  smaller  pike.  There  will  be 
more  days  when  the  angler  will  use  smaller  minnows  suc¬ 
cessfully  than  when  a  longer  length  will  be  indicated. 
We  have  taken  some  mighty  nice  fish  on  minnows  of  a 
size  ordinarily  used  on  crappie — especially  during  hot 
weather.  Pike  are  especially  fond  of  the  larger  offerings. 


Chapter  VI 


BAIT-CASTING  WATERS— LAKES 

The  Shallows — How  and  What  to  Cast 

THE  SHORELINE  is  the  haven  of  the  bait-caster, 
for  it  is  here  that  game-fish  are  found  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  fishing  season.  Their  shore  stay  is 
largely  due  to  the  presence  of  cover  coupled  with  an  abun¬ 
dant  food  supply,  both  being  necessary  to  cause  them  to 
remain.  When  shore  waters  develop  too  high  a  summer 
temperature,  the  fish  will  migrate  to  the  weed-beds,  deep¬ 
water  bars  and  the  spring  holes.  It  will  be  necessary  at 
such  times  to  go  down  after  them  if  any  success  is  ex¬ 
pected  or  to  cast  shore  areas  at  night  and  on  clouded 
days. 

The  shoreline  exhibits  many  kinds  of  water  in  a  trip 
around  the  average  lake,  each  variety  demanding  a  some¬ 
what  different  lure  and  different  methods.  We  shall  en¬ 
deavor  to  give  an  outline  of  some  successful  offerings  and 
methods,  trusting  the  angler  will  appreciate  the  fact  that 
he  must  work  out  his  own  precise  line  of  activity  as  the 
conditions  appear  before  him. 

One  of  the  most  fruitful  shore  areas,  and  one  little 
fished  by  the  average  angler,  is  the  dense  vegetation — be 
it  pads,  rush  growth  or  the  multitude  of  other  plant  forms 
that  grow  in  masses  in  shallow  waters.  Game-fish  love 
to  lie  in  the  open  places  below  the  matted  tops  and  a  lure 
will  be  succecssful  if  it  can  be  retrieved  over  and  through 
their  hiding  places.  There  is  no  lure  that  will  fill  the 
bill  quite  as  effectively  as  the  simple  weedless  hook  and 
pork  chunk.  In  more  open  growth  a  rind  may  be  used, 


67 


Surface  types  of  wooden  lures 


BAIT-CASTING  WATERS— LAKES 


69 


or  even  the  frog  or  weedless  bass  fly,  but  for  right  down 
weedy  water,  the  chunk  with  its  hopping,  erratic  surface 
action  will  draw  plenty  of  strikes  if  the  fish  are  present. 
Shoot  it  right  into  the  dense  weeds  and  work  it  through 
the  little  spots  of  open  water.  Many  fish  will  be  lost 
because  of  the  pull  that*  they  get  on  a  weed  caught  line, 
but  often  no  fish  will  be  hooked  if  this  water  is  passed. 

Where  the  water  is  shallow  and  some  open  areas  ap¬ 
pear,  it  will  be  possible  to  make  use  of  the  surface  lures 
equipped  with  weedless  hooks,  the  weedless  casting  spoons 
and  rind  kits,  and  the  weedless  frog  tandems.  Even 
these  will  pick  up  weeds  aplenty,  but  one  must  catch  some 
weeds  or  the  chances  are  that  no  fish  will  be  taken. 

Still  more  open  water  will  appear  as  pot  holes  in  the 
pads,  open  spots  between  the  rush  growth,  and  runways 
between  the  areas  of  dense  growth.  Here,  also,  the  weed¬ 
less  lures  suggested  above  may  be  indicated,  but  the 
angler  will  do  well  to  see  that  they  are  not  as  weedless , 
for  one  can  often  manipulate  an  open  hook  through  this 
type  of  water.  Cast  the  lures  into  every  little  pocket 
and  open  spot,  and  do  not  fail  to  drop  the  offering  right 
on  the  vegetation — hopping  it  off  into  the  open  areas. 

Just  outside  the  pads  and  the  rush  growth  there  is 
usually  deeper  open  water.  This  is  the  field  of  the  wob¬ 
bling  underwater,  the  pork  rind  rig,  the  open  casting 
spoon  and  the  frog  on  an  open  tandem.  Often  in  quite 
deep  water  the  surface  lure  will  win  out,  especially  in 
the  dusk  of  evening,  the  night,  or  early  morning.  Where 
the  surface  lures  fail,  bend  on  the  above  lures  and  work 
every  bit  of  the  water  near  the  growth  and  even  the 
deeper  lakeward  area. 

Approach  the  down  timber,  the  snags  and  the  rocky 
shoreline  with  care  and  pick  it  all  over,  foot  by  foot, 
with  the  lure  that  seems  to  fit  the  situation — surface  if 
the  water  is  shallow;  wobbler,  rind,  spoon  or  frog  if  it 


Underwater  types  of  wooden  lures 


BAIT-CASTING  WATERS— LAKES 


71 


appears  too  deep  for  good  surface  work.  Remember  that 
fish  may  be  lurking  behind  even  the  scantiest  cover,  and 
the  more  open  and  clear  the  area  the  more  care  must  be 
taken  by  the  angler  to  reach  the  desired  spots  with  a  long 
line. 

Shore  areas  are  best  cast  from  a  boat,  standing  well 
away  from  the  vegetation  and  working  in  toward  the 
shore.  It  is  possible,  however,  to  cast  from  the  shore  or 
to  wade  the  more  shallow  portions,  and  frequently  won¬ 
derful  fishing  may  obtain  in  this  way. 

Shore  fish  are  sometimes  very  easily  frightened,  again 
it  seems  almost  impossible  to  put  them  to  flight.  It  is 
well  to  approach  every  casting  area  with  the  thought  in 
mind  that  only  the  most  careful  casting  will  win.  Drop 
the  lure  lightly  and  from  a  distance,  working  up  to  a 
splash  cast  and  the  short  line  if  conditions  indicate  that 
such  methods  will  win.  We  have  seen  anglers  spoil  a 
good  piece  of  water  by  going  after  the  fish  with  slam 
bang  methods,  and  again  we  have  witnessed  these  same 
methods  win  fish  in  numbers.  It  all  depends,  but  take 
it  easy  first — no  harm  will  be  done  thereby. 

Working  the  W eed-beds 

In  practically  every  lake  the  bait-caster  will  find  patches 
of  weed-beds  in  the  more  open  and  deeper  waters,  well 
away  from  the  shoreline.  These  are  very  fruitful  areas 
especially  for  members  of  the  pike  tribe  and  for  wall-eyes 
on  occasion.  This  vegetation  rises  from  a  considerable 
depth  to  some  few  feet  below  the  surface  and  it  is  a 
favorite  haunt  of  game-fish  on  the  more  favorable  days 
in  midsummer. 

In  the  evening,  at  night,  and  in  the  early  morning  a 
surface  lure  will  often  draw  nicely  over  this  type  of 
water,  but  for  the  best  results  the  bait-caster  will  do  well 
to  use  the  wobblers,  the  casting  spoons  with  fly,  rind  or 


Wobbler  types  of  wooden  lures 


BAIT-CASTING  WATERS— LAKES 


73 


frog,  and  this  is  the  one  best  place  to  cast  a  minnow  of 
reasonable  size. 

Work  the  surface  of  the  bed,  the  sides  well  down,  and 
even  let  the  lure,  especially  the  frog  and  minnow,  sink 
well  into  the  weeds  before  retrieving.  If  wall-eyes  are 
present,  they  will  lie  in  the  weeds,  and  a  lure  hopped  out 
of  the  patch  into  the  clear  side  waters  will  be  very  at¬ 
tractive.  A  medium-sized  frog  is  a  wonderful  wall-eye 
bait  in  such  a  location  as  this. 

For  the  lone  angler  there  is  no  more  favorable  water 
than  the  deep-water  weed  areas.  The  boat  can  be  placed 
upwind  and  permitted  to  drift  down  over  the  patch,  while 
the  caster  covers  all  water  easily  and  without  attention 
to  the  oars.  Trolling  around  these  beds  will  yield  big 
when  the  angler  tires  of  the  casting  game,  and  with  the 
possible  exception  of  deep  water  fringing  the  rush  growth, 
there  is  no  better  opportunity  to  connect  with  a  giant  pike 
or  muskellonge. 

Deep-water  Casting 

With  the  coming  of  the  very  warm  days  of  midsummer, 
game-fish,  especially  bass,  will  seek  out  the  deeper  parts 
of  the  lake,  deep-water  bars  and  spring  areas.  When  in 
such  places  the  surface  and  wobbling  lures  will  not  draw 
and  it  will  be  necessary  for  the  angler  to  go  down  to 
the  fish  if  any  are  to  be  taken.  Usually,  too,  the  fish  are 
not  very  active  when  in  the  depths  and  a  slowly  moving 
bait  will  be  more  attractive  than  a  rapidly  moving  spoon 
or  plug.  For  this  reason  frogs  and  medium  large  min¬ 
nows  should  be  cast  over  bars  and  spring-holes,  well 
weighted  so  that  they  may  be  retrieved  slowly  just  off  the 
bottom. 

Live  bait,  carefully  cast,  will  often  be  the  taking  lure 
at  this  time,  but  a  dead  frog  or  minnow  can  be  tip  manip¬ 
ulated  so  that  it  will  be  equally  attractive.  This  tip 


74 


BAIT  CASTING 


work  is  something  difficult  to  describe,  but  it  consists 
of  a  mixture  of  tiny  jerks,  trembles,  slow  glides  and  stops, 
so  placed  and  timed  as  to  keep  the  bait  in  erratic  action. 
It  is  not  difficult,  but  there  is  just  a  bit  of  a  knack  in 
working  it  out. 

In  plugs,  wobblers  may  be  weighted  so  as  to  run  quite 
deep  in  the  water  but  the  best  plug  offering  is  the  old 
fashioned  underwater  —  the  original  wooden  “minnie.” 
We  prefer  that  these  be  in  natural  food  imitation  such 
as  the  green  or  dark  back  with  white  below,  the  various 
scale  finishes,  the  perch,  chub,  redfin,  pikie  and  other 
color  combinations  that  make  an  attractive  minnow-look¬ 
ing  plug. 

These  plugs  should  be  cast,  allowed  to  settle  well  to 
the  bottom  and  then  reeled  in  with  the  tip  manipulation. 
Get  the  last  part  of  that  advice,  tip  manipulation ;  that 
is  just  the  difference  between  casting  an  underwater  suc¬ 
cessfully  and  drawing  a  blank.  We  like  an  underwater, 
it  gets  fish  for  us,  but  we  also  know  how  unattractive 
a  straight  reeled  plug  usually  is  and  how  many  anglers 
have  given  up  the  old  style  plug  entirely. 

Weighted  pork  rind  rigs  can  well  be  cast  into  the 
depths,  and  some  of  them  will  not  need  the  addition  of 
a  weight  because  of  their  heavy  bodies.  There  are  also 
many  spoon  combinations  that  can  be  sent  down  to  the 
deep  lying  fish  as  a  trial  offering,  but  usually  spoons  must 
be  worked  too  rapidly  to  be  attractive  to  the  sluggish 
summer  game-fish.  We  have  found  that  natural  buck- 
tail  single  flies,  tied  full  and  behind  a  small  spinner,  will 
often  wake  up  the  bass  and  pike  at  such  times. 

Try  everything  when  the  fish  are  in  deep  water,  and 
when  everything  fails,  try  again — or  get  the  bait  rod  and 
go  after  pan-fish.  If  you  must  cast,  then  get  out  early 
and  late  or  try  the  night  game  in  the  coves  and  along  the 
shoreline  bordering  deep-water  beds. 


Chapter  VII 


BAIT-CASTING  WATERS— STREAMS 


Casting  Rapid  Waters 


STREAM  CASTING  is  excellent  sport  for  the  light 
rod  enthusiast.  Here  the  angler  should  use  only  the 
smaller  plug  baits,  especially  the  natural  finishes  and  the 
white,  gold  and  silver  bodies  with  red  heads.  Many 
plugs  will  do,  especially  on  certain  waters,  and  we  have 
a  fondness  for  the  natural  finishes.  But  plug  baits  are 
not  in  the  running  on  stream  fish  with  the  small  spoon, 
fly  and  pork  rind  combination  or  the  spoon,  single  hook 
and  minnow.  A  small  frog  will  often  be  indicated  or  a 
bunch  of  big,  red  earthworms  in  place  of  the  minnow. 
The  pork  rigs  are  fine  and  the  plain  single  hook  spoons 
in  the  smaller  sizes  will  take  fish  aplenty. 

For  casting  with  the  short  rod  the  pools  and  long  deep¬ 
water  reaches  are  probably  best,  though  the  angler  should 
work  the  fast-water  areas  carefully  if  after  the  small- 
mouth.  Just  below  the  riffles,  rapids  and  miniature  falls 
is  a  fruitful  locality  and  the  deep  ledges  along  the  shore¬ 
line  are  also  good.  Swirls  and  deep  pools  will  yield  well 
in  many  cases,  especially  during  warm  weather,  and  for 
summer  casting  the  dusk  of  evening  is  the  prime  time. 

Every  submerged  rock,  every  bit  of  down  timber,  every 
possible  natural  cover  may  yield  a  goodly  fish,  while  the 
shore  eddies  will  contain  pike  as  will  also  the  deep  pools 
and  sandy  spots  where  some  creek  or  smaller  tributary 
enters.  The  stream  caster  will  find  frequent  use  for  a 
plain  hook  baited  with  frog,  minnow,  helgramite  or  crab, 
weighted  just  enough  to  cast  and  retrieve  very  slowly 

75 


Casting  loop  knot 


c'" 


Non-kinking  swivel  sinker 


Two-ring  casting  sinker 


BAIT-CASTING  WATERS— STREAMS 


77 


along  the  bottom  or  permitted  to  float  down  over  the 
riffles  into  the  pools.  This,  to  be  sure,  savors  of  bait 
fishing  but  it  is  at  least  hybrid  casting  and  hence  is 
mentioned  here. 

Perhaps  the  best  offering  is  a  small  spoon  and  single 
fly  used  on  a  light  rod — the  fairy  wand  of  the  bait-caster. 
It  is  a  near  approach  to  fly-casting  and  is  stream  sport 
par  excellence.  We  favor  a  No.  3  round  blade  and  flies 
tied  to  a  No.  2  or  No.  1/0  hook  depending  upon  the  fish. 
Excellent  stream  flies  can  be  selected  from  any  bass  fly 
assortment,  but  red  and  white  (Lake  George),  yellow 
(Colonel  Fuller),  orange  (Oriole),  dark  (Montreal), 
black  (Black  Prince)  will  always  be  welcome.  Royal 
Coachman,  Alexandria,  Babcock,  Lord  Baltimore,  Jock 
Scott,  Professor,  Seth  Green,  Grizzly  King  and  others 
are  also  good  flies  to  follow  a  spinner  either  with  or 
without  a  strip  of  rind. 

Sluggish  Streams 

We  need  have  little  to  say  about  the  casting  of  slug¬ 
gish  streams  because  this  becomes  either  stream  casting 
or  lake  casting,  depending  upon  the  size  and  the  freedom 
from  current  as  well  as  depth.  Big  waters  will  need 
lake  methods  and  lures;  smaller  rivers  will  take  stream 
medicine. 

In  general,  it  may  be  said  that  sluggish  waters  will 
call  for  lake  methods  far  more  frequently  than  for  the 
smaller  and  lighter  fast-water  offerings  and  types  of  an¬ 
gling.  While  it  is  customary  to  cast  fast-water  streams 
from  the  bank  or  by  wading,  sluggish  waters  call  for  a 
boat  as  a  usual  thing.  Drifting  down  a  tree-fringed  river, 
casting  to  the  bank  and  the  overhanging  growth  will  yield 
excellent  fishing,  and  no  doubt  about  it.  We  know  of 
anglers  who  prefer  this  type  of  fishing  above  all  other 
kinds  of  casting;  some  prefer  lake  waters — but  oh  you 


78 


BAIT  CASTING 


white-water  streams  with  your  small-mouthed  bass  that 
fight  it  out  in  the  air! 

Work  every  snag  and  bit  of  cover  for  bass,  every  pocket, 
cove  and  eddy  for  pike,  and  cast  the  deep  waters  for 
wall-eye — getting  the  lure  well  down  and  bringing  it 
in  slowly.  The  frog  is  a  wonderful  bass  bait  in  sluggish 
rivers,  for  here  we  usually  find  the  large-mouthed  species ; 
just  as  we  would  cast  a  minnow  in  fast  streams  for  the 
small-mouth. 

Somewhat  larger  offerings  will  do  for  big  water, 
though  it  is  the  part  of  wisdom  to  hold  to  the  medium 
and  small  sizes  where  plugs  are  at  the  terminal  end  of 
the  cast. 


Chapter  VIII 


WEATHER,  SEASONS  AND  FISH 

THE  BAIT-CASTER  will  do  well  to  pay  but  little 
attention  to  weather  conditions.  When  the  oppor¬ 
tunity  comes — go  fishing.  We  know  all  about  the  “thus 
and  so”  of  the  east  wind  and  the  west  wind,  the  full 
moon  and  the  thunder  shower,  but  our  advice  is  given  in 
all  kindness — go  fishing  when  the  spirit  moves.  We  add 
a  little  table  that  may  or  may  not  be  of  value  on  your 
waters;  it  is  but  a  general  statement  of  usual  conditions 
that  may  help  those  who  know  little  of  fish  and  fishing. 
Take  it  for  what  it  is  worth  to  you. 

Spring 

Small-mouthed  bass:  Work  below  riffles,  pools  with 
rocks,  rock  ledges  and  the  rock  and  gravel  shoreline  of 
lakes,  casting  to  all  types  of  cover. 

Large-mouthed  bass:  Work  shoreline  high  banks, 
shoreline  weeds,  pads  and  rushes,  coves  and  shallow 
meadows,  casting  to  all  cover. 

Pike  and  muskellonge:  Work  pools,  coves,  connecting 
runs  between  lakes,  outlets  and  inlets,  sandy  shoreline 
and  just  outside  pads,  weeds  and  rushes,  casting  to  more 
open  water  than  for  bass. 

Wall-eyed  pike-perch:  Work  the  deep  water  and 
sandy  bars  and  points  of  rivers,  deep-water  bars  and  any 
deep  water  just  off  weedy  and  rush-grown  shoreline,  cast¬ 
ing  a  deep  lure  running  close  to  the  bottom. 

Summer 

Small-mouthed  bass:  Work  same  water  as  in  spring, 
adding  the  fast-water  areas  in  streams;  get  well  down  in 


79 


80 


BAIT  CASTING 


lakes  over  rock  bars  and  spring  holes  by  day,  same  water 
as  above  for  evening  and  early  morning  casting. 

Large-mouthed  bass:  Work  deep  water,  deep-water 
weed-beds  and  spring  holes  by  day,  shoreline  bordering 
deep  water  evening  and  morning,  clouded  days  and  at 
night. 

Pike  and  muskellonge:  Deep-water  weed-beds,  bars 
and  any  deep  water  by  day;  same  water  as  in  spring  for 
evening,  morning,  clouded  days  and  cool  weather. 

Wall-eyed  pike-perch:  Deep-water  rock  bars,  deep¬ 
water  weed-beds,  shoreline  bordering  deep  water,  morn¬ 
ing,  mid-day  and  evening. 

Fall 

Small-mouthed  bass:  Same  as  spring,  but  add  stream 
fast-water  areas. 

Large-mouthed  bass:  Same  as  spring,  but  will  be 
found  quite  generally  in  shallow  areas. 

Pike  and  muskellonge:  Same  as  spring  and  summer; 
great  rovers  and  feeders  in  the  fall,  will  be  picked  up  in 
unexpected  places. 

Wall-eyed  pike-perch:  Same  as  spring  and  summer 
but  may  hold  more  closely  to  deep  rock  bars  than  to  deep¬ 
water  vegetation. 

If  the  angler  will  keep  in  mind  the  fact  that  fish  are 
in  the  shallows  in  spring,  work  out  to  deep  water  as  the 
summer  heat  approaches  (coming  in  toward  the  shore 
from  the  deep  areas  at  night  and  on  cool,  clouded  days) 
and  return  to  the  shoreline  in  the  fall,  he  should  have 
little  difficulty  in  finding  a  position  where  there  are  fish. 


Chapter  IX 


CARE  OF  BAIT-CASTING  TACKLE 

Rods 

SPLIT  BAMBOO  and  solid  wood  rods  must  be  well 
cared  for  if  they  are  to  give  good  service.  There  are 
two  main  points  to  be  considered  at  all  times  in  this  care. 
First:  The  varnish  coat  must  be  kept  intact  to  shut 
out  the  moisture  which,  in  the  bamboo,  will  work  its 
way  into  the  glued  sections  and  spoil  the  action  of  the 
rod  even  if  the  strips  hold,  and  in  the  solid  wood,  will 
cause  warpage.  Second:  The  sections  must  be  kept  free 
from  strain  that  would  cause  a  bend  to  become  a  set. 

The  angler  will  need  to  keep  a  watchful  eye  on  the 
varnish  and  windings  and  be  sure  that  everything  is  in 
tip  top  shape  when  the  season  opens.  It  is  not  necessary 
to  apply  varnish  as  frequently  as  some  writers  claim  (two 
or  three  times  a  season)  unless  the  rod  is  in  constant  daily 
use  and  the  weather  is  wet  or  of  that  sticky  type  that  so 
tries  the  souls  of  both  men  and — varnish.  The  average 
bait-caster’s  rod  will  go  through  a  season,  possibly  two 
of  them,  nicely  with  but  a  thin  coat  of  high-grade  rod 
varnish  applied  in  the  early  spring.  It  is  an  easy  matter 
to  over-do  the  varnish  job  so  that  it  will  dull  the  rod 
action  and  we  would  advise  having  the  rod  rewound  and 
revarnished  by  the  manufacturers  or  some  reliable  tackle 
shop  when  it  appears  that  the  varnish  is  getting  too  thick. 
Of  course  a  rod  crank  will  desire  to  do  his  own  work — 
we  are  not  talking  to  rod  cranks — but  a  high-grade  rod 
should  receive  high-grade  service. 


81 


Pork  Rinds 


CARE  OF  BAIT-CASTING  TACKLE 


83 


There  will  be  more  trouble  with  the  ferrules  than  with 
anything  else — they  will  get  loose.  It  is  a  simple  matter, 
however,  to  remove  them,  to  scrape  away  the  old  cement, 
to  heat  cement  and  ferrule  and  warm  the  rod,  and  then 
to  replace.  Pins  must  be  pushed  in,  if  present,  and  never 
used  again .  We  have  never  been  able  to  figure  out  just 
why  some  makers  will  use  ferrule  pins  when  they  are  of 
no  earthly  use  and  are  only  a  bother  when  the  ferrule 
must  be  reset.  Every  angler  who  desires  to  care  for  a  rod 
properly  should  know  something  of  rod  building,  and  an 
excellent  little  book  on  this  subject  can  be  secured  from 
the  magazine  that  presents  this  handbook. 

Windings  will  need  to  be  replaced  occasionally  and  the 
silk  should  be  used  without  wax  if  it  is  to  retain  its  color. 
After  winding  pass  quickly  through  a  flame  and  then  coat 
the  winding  with  collodion  (very  thin  application)  or 
with  white  shellac,  drying  well  before  varnishing.  Col¬ 
lodion  is  best  if  properly  applied  since  shellac  will  darken 
the  winding  to  some  extent  though  not  as  much  as  plain 
varnish.  There  are,  also,  special  preparations  for  retain¬ 
ing  the  color  of  winding  silk — most  of  them  collodion  or 
shellac  in  some  form. 

Rods  should  be  stored  in  a  place  where  frequent 
changes  of  temperature  will  not  be  found.  It  is  well  to 
suspend  the  rod  from  the  tip  joint  if  it  is  to  be  out  of 
use  for  some  time  for,  even  if  lying  flat,  it  will  have  a 
tendency  to  conform  to  the  surface  on  which  it  rests,  and 
surfaces  are  not  always  flat.  Under  no  circumstances 
keep  the  rod  tied  up  in  a  cloth  bag  unless  it  is  on  a  form 
or  a  curved  tip  will  be  the  result. 

Steel  rods  must  be  gone  over  carefully  with  an  oiled 
rag  and  oil  must  also  be  run  into  the  ferrules  to  avoid 
joint  rusting.  Most  steel  rods  that  give  up  have  rusted 
through  from  the  inside .  Keep  the  rod  oiled  at  all  times 
and  as  faithfully  as  a  gun  crank  cares  for  his  pet  rifle. 


Hooking  live  bait 


Lip-hooked  frog  and  minnow 


Cheek-hooked  sucker 


CARE  OF  BAIT-CASTING  TACKLE 


85 


You  will  then  have  a  rod  that  will  give  good  service. 
Do  not  abuse  a  steel  rod  just  because  it  is  steel. 

Reels 

Most  of  the  care  of  the  reel  should  be  a  prevention 
rather  than  a  cure.  There  is  nothing  that  so  quickly 
wrecks  a  good  bait-casting  winch  as  a  bit  of  sand  or 
other  hard  substance  getting  into  the  “insides”  of  the 
reel.  Keep  the  reel  off  the  ground  at  all  times  and  when 
not  in  use,  keep  it  in  a  reel  bag.  Do  not  carry  it  loose 
in  the  coat  pocket  for  pockets  always  contain  grit  of  va¬ 
rious  kinds  as  well  as  dust  and  dirt.  The  former  will 
cut  the  moving  metal  parts  and  the  latter  will  gum  up 
the  works  so  that  a  poor  action  results. 

Water  will  not  hurt  a  reel  as  much  as  some  seem  to 
think.  There  is  very  little  steel  about  a  high-class 
reel,  mainly  the  spool  and  gear  journals  and  click  spring, 
and  these  are  so  coated  with  oil  that  water  will  have  lit¬ 
tle  effect  upon  them.  Of  course  it  is  best  to  keep  them 
from  getting  wet  and  one  should  not  put  a  wet  reel  away 
without  giving  it  a  chance  to  dry  out  thoroughly.  The 
take-apart  type  makes  this  a  very  simple  matter  and  we 
would  again  urge  prevention  rather  than  cure  for  the 
type  that  is  put  together  with  screws. 

A  casting  reel  should  be  kept  well  oiled,  just  a  drop 
at  a  time.  Too  much  oil  will  spoil  the  reel’s  action  and 
have  a  tendency  to  gum  very  quickly.  Just  enough  is 
right  and  will  be  determined  by  the  amount  of  use  the 
reel  gets.  High  priced  reels  can  well  be  sent  in  for  fac¬ 
tory  cleaning  and  adjusting  once  a  year — we  are  speak¬ 
ing  now  of  the  de  luxe  reels.  The  average  angler  will 
usually  put  them  out  of  their  fine  condition  through  the 
use  of  a  too  large  or  too  small  screw-driver,  as  well  as 
maladjustments  of  the  mechanism.  Such  reels  are  as 
fine  in  their  fittings  as  a  high  grade  watch  and  need  ex- 


86 


BAIT  CASTING 


pert  care.  Medium  priced  reels  may  be  “tinkered  with,” 
taken  apart,  cleaned  and  oiled  as  desired,  and  the  angler 
may  become  expert  enough  to  care  for  his  better  winches 
as  well. 

Prevent  the  reel  from  getting  dirty  and  keep  it  prop¬ 
erly  oiled. 

Lines 

Bait-casting  lines  need  little  care  aside  from  thorough 
drying  after  use.  Silk  is  animal  fibre  and  will  decom¬ 
pose  very  quickly  if  permitted  to  remain  damp  for  any 
length  of  time.  Dry  the  lines  in  the  shade  by  stretching 
them  between  trees.  When  the  line  is  to  be  put  away  for 
any  length  of  time  see  that  it  is  spooled  loosely  so  that 
it  will  not  “set”  in  coils. 

After  each  half  day  of  casting  break  off  about  four¬ 
teen  inches  of  line  and  make  a  new  casting  loop.  The 
end  of  the  line  gets  a  great  deal  of  wear  and  is  the  first 
to  give  up.  It  is  also  well  to  reverse  the  line  after  it  has 
been  used  for  some  time,  as  this  gives  the  caster  practi¬ 
cally  a  new  line  at  the  end  where  the  greatest  strain  will 
be  found  in  fighting  a  fish — the  last  few  yards  before  the 
net. 

Lures 

Keep  the  lures  clean,  hooks  sharp,  and  the  metal  parts 
of  all  lures  wiped  off  with  an  oiled  cloth.  Flies  and 
bucktail  must  be  kept  in  moth-proof  containers.  Take 
pride  in  your  tackle  box  and  its  equipment — it  will  pay 
when  the  test  comes  and  the  big  one  of  your  dreams  will 
not  be  among  those  missing. 


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How  to  Build  Cabins, 
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anything,  this  book  is  so  clear, 
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instructions  it  gives  you. 


This  brand  new  manual  gives  you 
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how  to  make  proper  foundations, 
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353  4th  Ave. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

1.  The  Cabin  Movement 

2.  Where  and  Wherewith  to 
Build 

3.  Foundations 

4.  Log  Cabin  Material 

5.  Log  Cabin  Walls 

6.  Log  Cabin  Floors  and  Roofs 

7.  Log  Cabin  Porches  and  In¬ 
terior  Details 

8.  Modern  Log  Cabins 

9.  Other  Types  of  Cabins 

10.  Doors,  Windows,  Shutters 

11.  Building  Fireplaces  and 
Chimneys 

12.  A  Few  Furnishing  Ideas 

13.  Modern  Conveniences 

14.  Beautifying  the  Cabin 

15.  Longer  Life  for  Your  Cabin 

16.  Hunting  and  Fishing  Lodges 

17.  Profit-Making  Tourist  Homes 

18.  Wayside  Stands 

19.  Inside  Cabins 

20.  Summer  Homes  in  National 
Forests 

21.  Snecifications  and  Estimates 

22.  Where  to  Get  it. 


O  Dept. 

oxr  ILQll©  BC-2 

New  York,  N.  Y 


